Pan Seared Salmon with Pumpkin Seed Cilantro Pesto

Ever make something and instantly think YESSS, this is definitely going in the rotation? Salmon is one of my go to seafood items and I've pan seared it or baked it a zillion different ways a zillion times for the sake of variety. Today's recipe though is now filed under one of my favorite salmon dishes, simply because of the pumpkin seed-cilantro pesto. This pesto is awesomeness redefined - so simple, so different and so versatile. I'm confident it will be great with roasted vegetables, chicken and pasta. In fact, I was experimenting with a new pasta salad the day after I made this pesto and the pasta needed something so I added a few tablespoons of this pesto and it made all the difference. Win!

Maine = Lots of Lobster

Last week I was in Maine with some of my favorite girlfriends - a relaxing and low-key trip that was needed by all! (Many thanks to SARB for inviting us up!) Seeing that we were in Maine, I got my game face on and was ready to eat lots of lobster. In my world, lots = once or twice! Back story - once when I was really little on new years day, I ate lobster and by the end of the day I was sick. I'm sure it had nothing whatsoever to do with the lobster and more likely all of the ice cream I ate that day, but whatever, in my child mind, I decided I must avoid lobster at all costs. 

Fast forward some 20+ years, I committed to eating lobster while on vacation because after all the world's best lobster comes from Maine. So 5 days later and 2 or 3 servings of lobster and I can safely say lobster is good stuff! Now I'm not going to start ordering it at restaurants left and right, but at least I now know I can eat it and be ok. Maine not only gave me a relaxing few days, but it also allowed me to conquer my lobster fears!

Baked Shrimp with a Panko & Feta Crust

Here's another recipe I created during my latest self-imposed recipe challenge. This baked shrimp with a panko and feta crust concoction had made its way to regular dish status in my home. It's beyond easy, light and takes only minutes to assemble. A win for a weeknight dinner.

Mahi Mahi with Tomato & Pepper Sauce

I'm vowing to be creative and cook with more seafood - I don't eat enough of it because I've always been scared to make it. Fish is hard to prepare - there's a fine line between undercooked, just right and overdone. So I always skipped over it in the grocery. But not this time! I bought some mahi-mahi after seeing a recipe in Bon Appetit magazine. Full disclosure: I wasn't too focused at the store so I took a few shortcuts in the ingredients to shorten the recipe. Didn't matter though because this recipe turned out to be pretty good. In fact, I clipped into my massive recipe book of favorites to create time and time again!

Salmon with Agrodolce Sauce

Another dish I was introduced to while living in Italy was salmon with agrodolce sauce. I nearly forgot all about its deliciousness until I saw a recipe in a an old copy of Gourmet magazine. Agrodolce is a classic sweet and source sauce in Italian cuisine. (Agro means sour and dolce means sweet.) In this recipe, the sauce is made by mixing sugar and balsamic vinegar until it is syrupy and drizzling it over pan seared salmon. 

Pan Seared Scallops with Asparagus

I can count on one hand the number of times I've prepared scallops whereas the number of times I've eaten scallops can't be quantified. So while standing in the seafood section of the grocery, I decided it was time to conquer this cooking fear of mine. I sauntered up to the seafood counter and confidently asked for 4 large scallops (seeing as I wasn't too confident, I wasn't ready to make this dinner for anyone else!). Once the scallops were decided, sauteed asparagus seemed like the perfect accompaniment. Both drizzled with a mixture of olive oil, butter and garlic were bound to be a tasty, and somewhat fancy, dinner for one. It turned out great so next time I will venture and make it for someone other than me!

Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Citrus Dressing

1. 
2. My new favorite meal is what you see above! I made it for lunch two weekend days in a row and seriously contemplated taking all of the pieces to work and making it for lunch again today. This shrimp & avocado salad with citrus dressing (original recipe courtesy of Food & Wine magazine) is what I would consider genius. Its colorful, its packed with flavor, its light and healthy. The perfect lunch in the summer before hitting the pool or a great salad starter for a dinner party. Enjoy and thank Food & Wine for sharing this magnificent recipe!
   
   

Pan Roasted Salmon & Bread Salad

When I knew my mom was coming to town, I started planning out dinners with new recipes so she could be my taste tester. Seeing how we both have commented we need to incorporate more seafood into our diets - I settled on a pan roasted salmon and bread salad recipe from Food & Wine magazine. What resulted was the perfect, fast and healthy all-in-one meal that I could serve her after a 7 hour car ride between Ohio and D.C. The combo of salt (capers), spice (red pepper flakes), sour (lemon) and crunch (the ciabatta bread chunks) provided a new and innovative way to enjoy salmon.

Shrimp & Grits

Another recipe courtesy of the back of a 2004 seasonal wine list for Cakebread Cellars in Napa Valley! Shrimp and grits is one of those dishes that I've seen at several restaurants and have always thought I might like it. I told my brother I was going to make it and he had some very funny and choice comments about the dish and its origins. So after a little research, I discovered not only is this a Southern thing, its really a breakfast dish. This would not work for me for breakfast. For dinner yes!

(Note: I halved the recipe because I wasn't confident in making this for anyone other than me!)

Ingredients:
For the grits:
chicken stock (2 cup)
grits ( 1/2 cup)
milk (1/4 cup)
cheddar cheese (1/2 cup, grated)
salt and pepper

Bring to a boil, 2 cups of chicken stock in a pot and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the grits and cook for 20 minutes on low heat. Stir often. Add the milk and cheese and stir until mixed. Season to taste with a little more salt and pepper and set aside.

For the shrimp:
shrimp (2 lbs, peeled and devined)
onion (1, diced small)
green bell pepper (1, diced small)
celery stalk (1, diced small)
minced garlic (1 tbsp)
olive oil (2 tbsp)
all purpose flour (2 tbsp)
crushed tomatoes (1 can)
chicken broth (1/2 cup)
Tabasco sauce (1 tsp)
salt and pepper

Add the olive oil to a large pan. Add the onions, pepper, celery and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes to soften the veggies, then turn the heat down to medium and cook for 5 minutes. Add the flour and stir into the veggies, cook for a minute and add the diced tomatoes and chicken broth.

Cook for 5 minutes, add the Tabasco, salt and pepper. Stir the shrimp into the gravy and cook until the shrimp turn pink.

Place a 1/2 cup of the reserved grits in a bowl, top with shrimp and gravy.

I don't know if this is what shrimp and grits is really like, but even if it isn't, it was still pretty good. I'd even make it again for someone else!

Pesto Salmon w/Tomato & Puff Pastry

I've seen this somewhere, but cannot remember where and its very very easy.

All you need: frozen puff pastry (thawed out), salmon, pesto (homemade or store bought), tomato, salt/pepper.

Once you thaw out the puff pastry, place on foil on a baking sheet. On a separate piece of foil, place the salmon on it and season with salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. The puff pastry might cook quicker than the salmon so watch it!
Meanwhile, make the homemade pesto (an easy trick - Knorr has a pesto mix that you can make and its pretty good.) If going the store bought route, skip this step. Slice tomatoes. Once the puff pastry is ready. Take it out and drizzle some pesto sauce over it. Top with tomatoes.
Top that with the salmon. Drizzle a little more pesto on top. Done and done.