Butter Roasted Salmon w Hazelnut Pesto

Modifying and combining two different recipes I sourced from Bon Appetit led to a fantastic dinner this evening. Really one of the best salmon preparations I've had in some time. I hope you give it a try.

ingredients

1/2 cup hazelnuts, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 T fresh oregano
1 T fresh thyme
1/2 cup (packed) fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 tablespoon capers
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 cup olive oil (I prefer lemon olive oil)
Kosher salt
4 6-ounce pieces skin-on salmon fillets (optional, can also prepare with skinless fillets)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Arugula (about 1/2 cup per person)
1 large honeycrisp apple, cored and diced
Dash of lemon juice
2 celery stalks, peeled
1 T caraway seeds
Lemon vinaigrette (your favorite brand or recipe)

preparation

Preheat oven to 400°. Toast hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 6-8 minutes. Let cool.

Pulse garlic, herbs, capers, lemon zest, in a food processor until finely chopped. Warm olive oil in a small saucepan; add garlic mixture to oil and sauté until fragrant. Season pesto with salt and stir in hazelnuts. Remove from heat and set aside.

Using vegetable peeler, create paper thin slivers of celery out of the stalks. Drizzle lemon juice over diced apple to prevent browning. Toast caraway seeds until fragrant. Combine arugula, apple, celery, seeds in salad bowl. Set aside.

Heat butter in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Season salmon with salt and cook, skin side down, until skin is crisp (do not disturb), about 3 minutes, basting constantly. Transfer to oven and roast salmon, basting once, until medium-rare (mostly opaque but still slightly translucent in the center), about 3 minutes.

Pour vinaigrette over salad (to taste) and toss.

Plate salmon, skin side up, topped with pesto, with salad alongside.

Comments

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