Eat the Rainbow! This month we have a colorful mix of roots and greens, rounded out by some lovely blueberries. Now, if only we could have some rain...
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Stuffed salmon with fresh herbs, roasted fennel and spuds is a magic combo, and super easy!
Quick Salmon and Potato Al Forno
From Jamie Oliver
~ Serves 4 ~ 1h 10 min to cook ~
Ingredients
600 g waxy new potatoes
1 large bulb fennel
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped or grated
15 g butter, cut into small pieces
olive oil
4 x 120 g salmon fillets, from sustainable sources, ask your fishmonger, scaled and pin-boned
a few sprigs fresh mint, leaves picked and finely chopped
1 small handful Parmesan cheese, grated
1 lemon, zest of
This is a brilliant one-tray dinner. Roasted fennel and potatoes are a
magic combination, as are the fresh herbs and salmon. Scoring and
stuffing the salmon is a great little trick you can use on any type of fish.
Preheat your oven to 220°C/425°F/gas mark 7. Bring a large pan of
salted water to the boil. Halve the potatoes lengthways and trim the
fennel bulb, reserving the leafy fronds for garnishing later. Cut the
fennel bulb into eight wedges, add these to the salted water with the
halved potatoes and parboil for around 6 minutes.
Drain the vegetables in a colander and leave to steam-dry for a minute.
Transfer to a large roasting tray and season well with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle over half the chopped parsley and all of the garlic, dot over the
butter and drizzle well with olive oil. Toss everything together in the
roasting tray, then shake it out so it is in one even layer. Cook in the
oven for about 30 minutes, or until golden.
While the vegetables are roasting away in the oven, you can start
preparing the salmon fillets. Pinch the fillets so they plump up and use
the length of a knife to score the skin side of them. You want to score
about 1cm down into them. Not only will this help all the lovely flavours
get right into the fish, it will also help it cook more quickly. Season both
sides of the fish well and stuff the remaining chopped parsley and the
mint leaves into the scores. Mint goes brilliantly with oily fish, such as
salmon.
Once the potatoes are nice and golden, take them out of the oven and
sprinkle the grated Parmesan over them. Give everything a bit of a jiggle,
then lay the salmon, skin-side up, on top. Sprinkle the lemon zest over
the top, drizzle with olive oil then cook for 15 minutes.
Just before the salmon comes out of the oven, chop the reserved fennel
fronds. Sprinkle them over the finished dish, then serve it in the middle
of the table with some wedges of lemon and let everyone tuck in!
Mediterranean Beet and Feta Skillet Bake
Adapted from Inspiralized by Ali Maffuci
~ Serves 4-6 ~ 20 mins to prepare ~ 25 mins to cook
Ingredients
1 cup halved red and yellow cherry tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley plus 1 tsp for garnish
1 tsp dried oregano
3 tsp red wine vinegar
½ cup pitted Kalamata olives
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 beets, spiralized with the spaghetti blade
1 small red onion, peeled and spiralized with the spaghetti blade
Salt and pepper
1 8oz block of feta or halloumi cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients
except the cheese and garnish
Place the block of cheese in the center of a large oven-safe skillet. Top and
surround it with the beet noodle mixture. Cover with foil and bake for 20-30
mins or until the beet noodles wilt. Serve hot, garnished with the remaining
parsley.
All About Fennel
Fennel is a plump, pale green bulb that should be refrigerated and used within 3 to 4 days. The stalks dry out more quickly than the bulbs, so wrap them in a damp towel and a plastic bag for longer storage.
Fennel can be substituted for celery, or can be braised, baked, steamed, sautéed or grilled, or used as a salad vegetable. The leaves can be used as a garnish or seasoning. The stalks are likely to be too stringy to use, except where they are close to the bulb.
Cut off the stalks just where they emerge from the bulb. Fennel has a core, which is visible once you cut it in half. If the bulb is small you can leave the core in, but if it is large, quarter it and remove the core with a paring knife. Taste to see if it is tough or stringy. Remove any scarred outer leaves by cutting a thin slice from the base of the bulb, and pulling them off. They can be used for a quick stock or peeled, sliced and cooked.
Good partners for fennel: olive oil, butter, thyme, bay, parsley, fennel seeds, orange, lemon, saffron, tomatoes, potatoes, olives and garlic. Also goes well with Parmesan, Gruyere, and goat cheeses.