Seared Salmon with Spinach and Creamy Roasted Peppers

Goal: Eat more salmon. Issue: I don't really care for salmon. Solution: Try to hide it?

Bo has high cholesterol. In trying very hard to bring it down, I have pledged to make salmon once a week. There. I put it in writing. Now it is real.

Salmon is full of Omega3 Fatty Acids, which is very good to lower bad cholesterol. It is important for it to be in our diet. I don't really like the strong flavor or the way it is usually cooked - grilled with a bit of salt and pepper. If I am to be able to eat AND enjoy it, it needs to have other strong flavors involved to satisfy my tongue!

Seared Salmon with Spinach and Creamy Roasted Peppers is from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless. Since I love both spinach and peppers (especially when I get to roast them!), and the word "creamy" is always pleasing to my ears, it seemed a perfect starting place.

The "cream" sauce was fun to make and smelled terrific. Gently sauteing the spinach in the bubbling mixture made for a lovely pale green. And the best part was plating the sauce with the seared salmon, which was cooked with liberal amounts of salt and pepper and in the lovely garlicky oil.


Serving with white rice would make an elegant meal for guests. Or for a special night at home. We ate ours with corn tortillas from the freezer, also a good choice as they complemented the masa in the sauce nicely.


Rounded out with a crisp white wine - well the salmon was tolerable! Almost enjoyable!

Of course, anything is enjoyable if served with wine!

Seared Salmon with Spinach and Creamy Roasted Peppers (Rick Bayless)
2 fresh poblano chiles
10 ounces cleaned spinach
3 tb. olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
1-2 tb. masa harina (mexican corn "flour" used for making tortillas)
1 1/2 cups milk, plus a little more if needed
Four 4 to 5 ( 1 1/4 pounds total) skinless samon fillets
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper


Turn the oven on its lowest setting.

Heat the oil in a very large skillet, preferably non-stick, over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring regularly, until soft and lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, scoop the garlic into a blender. Set the skillet aside.

Rub the blackened skin off the chiles and pull out the stems and seed pods. Rinse the chiles to remove bits of skin and seeds. Roughly chop and add to the blender, along with the masa harina and milk. Blend until smooth.

Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Sprinkle both sides of fish liberally with salt and pepper. Lay the fillets in the hot oil and cook until richly browned, about 2-3 minutes.

Use a spatula to flip the fillets, and cook until the fish barely flakes when pressed firmly with a finger or back of a spoon (you want it slightly underdone), ususally a couple of minutes longer for fish that is about 1 inch thick. Using the spatula, transfer the fish to an ovenproof plate and set in the oven.

With the skillet still over medium- high, pour in the poblano mixture and whisk until it comes to a boil and thickens, about 1 minute.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. If the sauce has thickened past the consistently of a cream soup, whisk in a little more milk. Taste and season with salt, add the spinach to the sauce and stir until it is warm and well coated with sauce.

Divide the creamy spinach among plates, top each with portion of the salmon. Or you can spoon the sauce over the fish.

Yellow Corn Pancakes with Smoked Salmon

Sm salmon, originally uploaded by Kim De.

Yes, I have been gone for a few days. You see, my birthday was Friday so there was a bit of restaurant eating. But I am back, if for a few days, as the big NYC trip quickly approaches.

To continue the Mesa Grill theme, tonight was Yellow Corn Pancakes with Smoked Salmon and Mango-Serrano Crema. This was a very quick dinner to pull together. It shows up in the appetizer section of the book but is also perfect for a light dinner.

I made the crema first, using greek yogurt for the base and leaving out the mango, as they arent readily available this time of year. I then prepped the dry and wet pancake ingredients stopping to watch football until it was time to eat.

The pancakes were very quick to cook, then stacking them on the plates took only a few seconds more. Add a nice dry white wine, and you have a light Sunday night dinner.

The flavors work well together. I can see how the mango would add a nice sweet layer to the crema, but we didnt feel it was lacking without it, especially with a touch of honey. All in all, another winner from the creative mind of Bobby Flay!

Yellow Corn Pancakes with Smoked Salmon (Adapted from Bobby Flay)

Mango-Serrano Creme Fraiche
¾ cup creme fraiche or sour cream
1 or 2 roasted serrano pepper, finely diced (depending on how spicy you prefer it)
½ ripe mango, peeled, seeded and finely diced
Honey (to taste depending on how sweet the mango is)
2 tablespoons finely diced red onion (I used green onion)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine the creme fraiche, serrano, mango (honey, if needed) and red onion in a small bowl; season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Yellow Corn Pancakes
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons honey
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
Melted butter (to grease the pan)
24 paper-thin slices smoked salmon
Cilantro leaves

In a mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, slat and honey. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and melted butter, add the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined.

Heat a large nonstick sauté pan over high heat and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Working in batches, drop the batter by spoonfuls to make twelve 3-inch pancakes. Wipe the pan out with a paper towel and spray with nonstick cooking spray between batches. Cook pancakes until light brown on both sides and set aside, stacked and covered with foil.

Place a pancake on each plate, spread 1 tablespoon of the creme fraiche over each pancake, and place 2 slices of salmon on top. Top with another teaspoon of the crème fraiche and garnish with a cilantro leaf. (I used green onion)