EnnaEel Cooks

May 3rd, 2009

I’d go the whole wide world.

Posted by LA in Breakfast, Brunch, Eggs, Recipes, Salmon, Seafood


I have no idea what to call this. How about Salmon and Spinach Benedict with a Mock Wasabi Hollandaise? I don’t know if it counts as a benedict variation if there’s nothing starchy involved. But we’re going to pretend, since it tasted really awesome anyway.

Mock Wasabi Hollandaise
1/2 c. Kewpie mayonnaise
2/3 t. wasabi powder (or to taste)
2 T. orange juice
1 t. grated orange peel
1 t. fresh lemon juice

  • Whisk mayonnaise, wasabi, orange juice, grated orange peel, and fresh lemon juice in small bowl to blend.
  • Cover and refrigerate until use.

    • Salmon and Spinach Benedict
    6 oz canned salmon
    4 oz baby spinach, coarsely chopped
    2 scallions, minced
    1 t. finely grated peeled fresh ginger
    1/4 t. kosher salt
    1/4 t. black pepper
    1 large egg white
    1 T. soy sauce
    Vegetable oil for brushing skillet
    2 large eggs

  • Break apart salmon, then stir together with spinach, scallions, ginger, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until well combined.
  • Beat together egg white and soy sauce in a small bowl and stir into salmon mixture, then form into 2 patties.
  • Heat a nonstick skillet over moderate heat until hot and lightly brush with oil. Cook patties, carefully turning once, until golden brown and cooked through, 6 to 7 minutes total.
  • While cooking patties, boil water in a pan that is at least 3 inches deep. Reduce to a simmer, and slip eggs carefully into slowly simmering water. Cover and turn off heat. Cook 3 to 5 minutes, depending on firmness desired.
  • Remove eggs from water with a slotted spoon. Allow to drain well.
  • Place egg on salmon patty, and spoon sauce on top. Garnish with cracked pepper.

    • A couple of things.

    First, I realize that not making an honest-to-goodness hollandaise sauce might be considered blasphemy to some, but preparing these recipes has made me all the more aware of what I end up consuming. And the thought of eating a cup of butter in the form of hollandaise kind of made me feel sick.
    Mayonnaise, bearnaise, hollandiase, aioli. They’re all cousins, right? So I made a mayonnaise-based sauce, and it suited the dish perfectly.

    Second, I’d like to point out that this dish, like most of what I cook, was thrown together from the randomness that I could gather together from my kitchen. I wish I could say that I actually plan things ahead. Instead, it was more like me sleeping in, waking up and rummaging through my fridge, and trying to figure out what I could make from salmon and eggs.
    Not very glamorous. But I do wear an apron with pink parakeets on it. So, maybe a skoche glamorous.

    • Listening to:: Spoon - The Book I Write
    • Status:: -100 Energy due to ear infection. (Or Swine Ear as I like to call it.)
    November 4th, 2008

    Go ahead and take the town then. The town is yours to take.

    Posted by LA in Breakfast, Recipes


    Pumpkin pancakes and oven-coddled eggs with mashed potatoes and herbs. Because it’s fall. And because my insides must be filled with pumpkin in the fall.

    Oven-coddled eggs with mashed potatoes
    1/2 c. soy milk
    1 bay leaf
    14 ounces Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
    1/4 c. finely chopped shallots
    2 T. chopped fresh green onion
    2 T. butter
    1 t. rosemary
    1 t. thyme
    1 t. crushed garlic
    4 large eggs
    6 T. freshly grated Pecorino Romano
    1 t. fresh ground pepper

  • Butter four 3/4 c. ramekins. Bring soy milk and bay leaf to simmer in small saucepan. Remove from heat. Cover; let steep 15 minutes. Discard bay leaf.
  • Meanwhile, cook potatoes in medium saucepan of boiling salted water until very tender, about 15 minutes. Drain. Place potatoes in medium bowl. Add warm soy milk, shallots, green onion, butter, rosemary, and thyme; mash until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide potato mixture among ramekins. Spoon small amount of crushed garlic into center. (Can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before continuing.)
  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Carefully crack 1 egg over potatoes in each ramekin. Sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon Parmesan. Place ramekins in baking pan. Pour enough hot water into pan to come halfway up sides of ramekins. Bake until egg whites are gently set but yolks are still soft, about 17 minutes. Remove ramekins from baking pan. Sprinkle with ground pepper, chives, or Parmesan and serve.

    Pumpkin pancakes
    1 1/4 c. unbleached all purpose flour
    2 T. brown sugar
    2 t. baking powder
    1/2 t. cinnamon
    1/4 t. ground cloves
    3/4 t. salt
    1 1/3 c. soy milk
    3/4 c. canned pure pumpkin
    1/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
    1 t. vanilla extract
    4 large eggs, separated
    2 T. sugar
    vegetable oil

  • Whisk flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, and salt in large bowl to blend.
  • Whisk milk, pumpkin, egg yolks, melted butter and vanilla in medium bowl to blend well.
  • Add pumpkin mixture to dry ingredients; whisk just until smooth (batter will be thick).
  • Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites in another medium bowl until stiff but not dry, slowly adding sugar. Fold whites into batter in 2 additions.
  • Brush large nonstick skillet with oil; heat over medium heat. Working in batches, pour batter by 1/3 cupfuls into skillet. Cook until bubbles form on surface of pancakes and bottoms are brown, about 1 1/2 min per side. Repeat with remaining batter, brushing skillet with oil between batches.

    I’m not a big maple syrup fan, so instead I just added a little bit of butter and dusted them with powdered sugar. Mmmm.
    I didn’t use a mixer to beat the egg whites, so the batter stayed a bit more dense than I might have liked. After making a few cakes to have for dinner, I thinned out the batter a bit with a little more pumpkin and soy milk, and made crepes for lunch tomorrow. I’m not completely sure how refrigerating them will work out, so I put half in the fridge, half in the freezer.
    Hooray for experiments on pumpkin pancakery in the fridge environment. Science must be served!

    I don’t think it will ever feel not-awkward to have a cashier ring myself up for one potato, one shallot, one garlic clove, and one orange.
    Cooking for one much?

    • Listening to:: Bishop Allen - Rain
    • Status:: + 20 Meh