Smoked Salmon

I need to come to terms with the fact that I’m on the verge of killing this blog by disregarding it.  Sadly pregnancy # 2 has me on a strict diet of the kind of food found on a T.G.I. Friday’s menu rather than things that I’m proud and inspired to write about.  Despite all that, I can’t put an end to Storkbite Stew without posting about the amazing salmon we searched out on a recent trip to West Cork, Ireland.

Smoked Salmon

Enter Frank Hederman…

Several years ago I read Colman Andrews’ article on the food revolution going on in West Cork in Saveur magazine. I have since been inspired to seek out these small artisanal producers.

My husband and my toddler decided on a whim to head to West Cork, rent a car and drive around.  The only rule we had was to stop at every sign that said “Honey For Sale” and that was our idea of an ideal family vacation.   Throw in a rented farmhouse, some sheep, cows and a quest for the finest smoked salmon and that is how we spent two lovely weeks which we can’t wait to repeat soon.

On this quest I went looking for both Frank Hederman of the Belvelly Smoke House and Sally Barnes of Woodcock Smokery.  Ms. Barnes proved impossible to find and after asking every farmer, sanitation worker and school kid getting off the bus in Castletownsend, we aborted our mission.  I’ve had Ms. Barnes’ salmon before at a bridal shower in Connecticut and it is indeed unforgettable.

Mr. Hederman on the other hand has a well marked smokehouse and a fancy little room where you can sample his wares.  It’s behind the house where he and his family seem to live.  He will even give you a demonstration of the cold smoke house which literally blows cooled smoke through a vent in the floor.  We saw oats being smoked for these delightful little Ditty’s Irish Oatcakes which are the perfect accompaniment to the smoked salmon.

Frank greeted us by telling us that Alice Waters rings him up every Christmas asking for his salmon which is her favorite.  And after sampling it, it’s my favorite too!  I’m telling you that this smoked salmon is a dream come true — it’s rich, buttery, silky, supple, fleshy and distinct of all other smoked salmon I’ve ever had.

I think I spent close to 60 euros on two small pieces and three slabs of mackerel as my only souvenir from our trip.

After my big purchase I had to shepherd this prize around Ireland as we traveled a bit before coming home.  The smoked salmon was a stowaway in a communal refrigerator at the Dzongchen Beara Buddhist meditation center where I was concerned that both my salmon and I would be tossed at any moment harboring a dead fish.  From there it traveled to the end of the Dingle Peninsula and on to Bunratty before our flight home.  We constantly checked it’s temperature and hoped for the best.   Of course it survived — it’s smoked!

We enjoyed it here in our own home kitchen alongside the first French breakfast radishes of the season and Ditty’s Irish Oatcakes with a nice white wine and some creme fraiche.  We savoured each piece and are very eager to return to Frank for more.

Catfish Stix

In our effort to follow the Lenten diet, we are trying to consume fish on holy days and Fridays.  Do we succeed?  Not sure yet.  It’s often hard for me to remember that bacon is a meat and not a condiment.  We hope to get better by the time Easter rolls around.  Here is my variation of a catfish po’ boy.

Catfish Stix

This is actually relatively simple if you like to get your fingers sticky in cornmeal breading.  Use three shallow bowls: one for flour, one for beaten egg, one for cornmeal souped up with Old Bay seasoning plus salt and pepper.  Cut your catfish into smaller pieces, rinse it, pat it dry with paper towels and throw it in the flour bowl a few pieces at a time.  The process is flour first, then egg, then cornmeal.  Repeat until all your fish is covered and your fingers are sufficiently breaded too.

Get your pan of oil screaming hot and add the fish very carefully.  A pair of tongs is highly recommended for this maneuver.  Once the fish is golden brown let it rest on paper towels.

Served on a toasted potato long roll (fancy name for a hot dog bun) with tartar sauce and a lemon wedge.  It’s so good you will hardly know you are making a sacrifice by eating fish on Friday.

Copious Amonts of Zucchini

It’s a bumper crop for zucchini this year – at least from our CSA.   I’m almost running out of ideas on how to process it.  Storkbite is consuming her fair share, it was her first “real” food after all.  I’m not sick of it yet, but it’s getting real hard to be creative.  There has been an overload of eggplant as well.  I’m doing better with it than last year, the last one is going into a baba ganouge today.  I don’t think we will see the end of it though now tomatos are abundant.  My new breakfast is toast, grilled tomato and a friend egg.  Here are a few highlights from the past few days:

Eggplant Rollatini

This was a really easy dish that was prepped over the course of a few days.  One thing I’m learning is take time to prep when you can get it. Storkbite doesn’t allow me time to actually enjoy what I’m doing in the kitchen now that she slithers.  On the day I got seven eggplants, I sliced them all the long way and grilled them with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper.  When they cooled, I neatly piled them into a plastic container and stashed them in the refrigerator.  A few days later (not sure how many) I pulled out my eggplant and made the rollatini.

Simply use a small container of ricotta cheese, mix in an egg, salt, pepper and chopped parsly. Combine it in a mixing bowl and set aside.  Add a ladle full of some sauce (in this case my very own Basic Sauce) to the bottom of your olive oiled baking dish and begin to roll your eggplant.  It doesn’t have to be pretty and sometimes it’s easier to put two eggplant peices together laid flat.  Add a dollop of cheese and roll.  Once you have all your rollatini in the dish, cover it them with sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until the cheese is golden brown.  This was a Papa pleaser – he loves cheesy baked goodness and it’s a great way to use up your eggplants.

Salmon Loaf

I have no idea what to call this except “Salmon Loaf” which sounds horrible because it was so delicious!  I realized that I had nice grilled salmon left over from the onigiri which was just sitting in the refrigerator calling my name.  Storkbite’s Papa was so taken with this that he wants it worked into our regular menu.  It was very easy so that is fine with me.  The filling consists of chopped grilled salmon, chopped scallions, chives, black sesame seeds and a dash of sesame oil to combine it.  Then I wrapped the filling in sheets of puffed pastry dough available in the freezer section of any super market.  Once it was nicely rolled up I put slits on the top to let the steam out, brushed them with a little oil and sprinkled with black sesame seeds.  I baked these at 425 (as indicated on the dough package) for 30 minutes until golden brown and puffy.  I served by slicing these through the pre-sliced slits which helps to keep the pretty puff pastry in tact.  With a simple salad these were a huge hit, and made great room-temp leftovers for lunch.

Mini Burgers

One of my favorite things is a mini burger. It satisfies my itch for a burger and doesn’t weigh me down after eating 1 lb. of beef.  I like to buy mini dinner rolls at the bakery and make them at home.  In this case I used ground turkey, doctered it up with an egg, salt, pepper, chopped scallions and diced green peppers which I combined in a mixing bowl.  I grilled zucchini chips for toppings and cut up tomatos.  Once I formed my mini burgers into balls, I grilled them on my trusty grill pan.

These got assembled on a toasted bun with olive oil mayo, grilled zuccs, cheddar cheese and fresh tomatos.  They knocked my socks off and were probably on the healthier side of things too.