OK, that special date, or Valentine's Day. Candles. Check. White tablecloth. Check. Bottle of wine. Check.
Uh-oh. What about a romantic dinner?
For cooks who like challenges, try this delicious, adventurous Valentine's recipe. It's well worth the effort.
Maple Glazed Salmon is fairly easy to make; however, Red Wine Sauce is surprisingly not as simple as its short recipe implies. Quite a few things can go wrong and make the butter break. With this in mind, be sure to have enough red wine on hand for a second (or even a third) attempt, and also to drink away the frustration when the sauce suddenly and without warning separates into its components. Luckily, this doesn't make it inedible, it just won't look quite as pretty. And unless your guest is a professional food critic, he or she will be delighted regardless.
Maple Glazed Salmon
Ingredients
- 1 tsp. Vegetable Oil
- 4 TB Maple Syrup
- 2 med. Salmon Fillets (fresh)
- Kosher Salt
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Heat oil in a large oven-proof skillet over low heat.
- Meanwhile, place salmon on paper towels to absorb excess moisture and to prevent splatter.
- Season salmon lightly on both sides.
- Pour maple syrup into shallow, wide dish.
- Dip the salmon into the maple syrup. Be sure to coat evenly.
- Carefully add the fillets to the hot oil.
- Cook for 1-2 minutes and then turn, carefully.
- Place the skillet in the oven and bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on thickness, until the clear juices of the salmon turn white and begin to escape from the sides of each fillet.
- Serve immediately with Red Wine Sauce (recipe follows). Pair with Grilled Asparagus and Parmesan Mashers, or for further recipes, see A Simple Approach to Gourmet Cooking.
Red Wine Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 c. Red Wine (of good quality)
- 2 small pats of butter (kept in the fridge until the last moment)
Instructions
- While the salmon is baking in the oven, get started on the sauce.
- Reduce the red wine over medium-low heat until it just begins to thicken slightly and stick to the pan.
- Do not over-reduce.
- Remove from the heat and let cool until it just stops steaming, but don't let it cool too long as it still needs to be warm enough to melt the butter.
- Add the cold pats of butter and swirl them into the red wine reduction until melted.
- Sauce should be smooth and velvety.
- Keep warm but do not reheat as the butter will break.
A Note on Presentation
First off, make sure the plate is warm. A cold plate will suck all the heat out of the food before it even arrives at the table. But too warm a plate will make the butter in the sauce break (and if it's come this far and hasn't broken . . .). Place the Parmesan Mashers on the plate, slightly off center, but kept in a rounded, orderly mound. Carefully rest the Salmon against the Mashers - maximum height, while also being stable enough to transport, is the goal. Gently lean the Grilled Asparagus, one at a time, against the Salmon, tips pointing up. Spoon the Red Wine Sauce in an arc around the base of the Salmon. Keep it clean - wipe up any stray spots of sauce or drippings. Enjoy with whatever is left of the red wine.
