Even though this isn't a recipe-based blog every once in awhile something happens in my kitchen that I have to share. A few days ago, armed with a quarter pound of smoked salmon and a handful of brussels sprouts I decided to make smoked salmon alfredo. With brussels sprouts. It was delicious and I'm going to give you a recipe in a minute.
First I want to tell you that the smoked salmon I used was a nice surprise. I often get shelf stable smoked salmon (rather than refrigerated, often vacuum-packed smoked salmon) for various far away folks during the holidays and walking down the aisle where I normally find it at New Seasons I noticed a new package of smoked salmon on the shelf -- this one from Oregon. I grabbed a box.
I'd like to give you some info. beyond the fact that it was yummy, and moist and made my stomach happy but for some reason the website attached to the product -- Oregon Smoked Foods, Inc. -- is acting funny. I'll revisit it soon and get you some more information. I'm curious. The only info. I can give you about the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians is that I gathered and included some very interesting old recipes from the tribe for a story I did about lamprey in 2006 for the Portland Tribune.
For now, let me tell you about the tasty smoked salmon alfredo I made.
First I sauteed several thinly sliced brussels sprouts over medium heat with half a diced yellow onion and two minced fresh cayenne chiles in a couple teaspoons of bacon fat and tablespoon of butter. After a few minutes I added the broken into hunks smoked salmon and took the pan off the heat. I preheated the oven to 400 degrees.
Next I put a salted pot of water to boil and once boiling I added a pound of spaghetti and let it cook till done.
While the pasta boiled I put a small oven-safe dish in the oven once it was preheated to 400 degrees and left it in there for a few minutes to warm up. I removed the pot once it was hot and cracked a couple eggs into it with a cup or so of finely grated asiago, a half cup or so of half-and-half and I whisked that together.
Then I mixed this heated egg/cheese slurry with the right out of the pot and still piping hot cooked pasta and the hot brussels/onion/chili/salmon mix. I ground some fresh pepper over the lot, added a few shakes of sea salt, and topped the spaghetti with some minced parsley. It was delicious and I highly recommend it.
This smoked salmon salad from Tria Cafe in Philadelphia that a hungry blogger recently wrote about sounds pretty yummy too if you're looking for other smoked salmon ideas.