Recently Mr. DD received some good news at work. Nothing earth shattering, just a little something he'd been working on for awhile finally coming to fruition. Which in my book equals celebration.
Celebration around here usually starts with good food. The challenge is finding something special and yummy, but not too time consuming, and most importantly family friendly.
Enter this paired down salmon en croute recipe from BBC Good Food. The bulk of the recipe can be made in advance and baked at the last minute, plus my pre-schooler loves salmon. Bonus.
Of course, nothing ever goes according to plan when you have little kids. We had good naps/quiet time, everyone was ready to go for Daddy's homecoming, and then...
Meltdown. Of epic proportions. And of course, that day, we do NOT like salmon. Of course. Oh well, what can you do? Reheat last nights spaghetti, that's what.
More for Mr. DD and me!
Served with a simple cauliflower puree and an arugala salad.
Ingredients
3 tbs olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
1 c. crimini mushrooms, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
juice of 1/2 lemon
100 g watercress, chopped
2 tbs dill, chopped
1 tbs chives, chopped
2 1/2 tbs sour cream
6 sheets filo dough, defrosted
2 12 oz skinned salmon fillets
Directions
1. Heat 2 tbs oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Add in the shallots and fry for 2-3 minutes or until soft, then add the mushrooms and garlic and cook another 3-4 minutes or until any liquids have evaporated. Add the lemon juice and cook until all the liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat, stir in the watercress. Add the dill and chives, season with salt and pepper. Leave to cool.
2. Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Once the mushroom mixture is cool, add the sour cream. Lay out one sheet of filo dough with the short end facing you. Brush all over with some of the remaining oil. Layer on 4 more layers of filo, oiling each as you go.
3. Lay one salmon fillet, skin side down, across the width of the filo, about 1/3 of the way up. Season with pepper. Spoon the mushroom mixture over the top of the fillet. Lay the other salmon fillet on top, skin side up. Season with pepper. Fold the short end of the pastry over the salmon, then bring the other end over the enclose the salmon. Place the seam side down on the baking sheet and fold the ends under as neatly as possible.
4. Brush the outside with the remaining oil. Scrunch up the last sheet of filo, pressing it lightly on top in big folds. The brush with the last of the oil. {Can be prepared up to 3-4 hours in advance, chill until ready to cook.} Bake 25 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and crispy. Remove from the oven and let rest 2-3 minutes before slicing.
Until next time,
