Best The Ultimate Makeover Salmon En Croûte Recipes

SALMON EN CROUTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Set aside.
• In a small bowl, stir together the mascarpone cheese, dill and zest and juice of the lemon to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside one-third of the filling and reserve for the sauce
• Pat a salmon filet with a paper towel to slightly dry. Place the filet at one end of a strip of phyllo, leaving a 3- to 4-inch overhang, and season with salt and pepper. Spread half of the remaining mascapone mixture over the filet then cover with an even, flat layer of the half the spinach leaves. Wrap the phyllo overhang over the filet and roll the salmon up in the dough, brushing the phyllo with butter as you roll. Tuck any excess phyllo under. Prepare the second piece of salmon the same way and place on one of the prepared baking sheets.
• Fold the last piece of phyllo 4 times to a quarter of its original size (an approximate 12-by-9-inch rectangle). Brush with butter and, using a 2-inch heart cutter, cut 6 hearts from the phyllo. Place on the other prepared baking sheet.
• Bake until the hearts are golden, 5 to 10 minutes, and the phyllo around the salmon is crisp, flaky and golden, about 20 minutes.
• In a small saucepan, whisk together the reserved mascarpone mixture, the cream, Dijon mustard and salt and pepper. Warm (do not boil) over medium heat. Serve the salmon packets with a drizzle of cream sauce and top each with 3 hearts. Serve extra sauce on the side.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the water, oil and egg. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and using a wooden spoon or a Danish whisk, stir the mixture until a shaggy dough comes together.
• Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead until the dough is a bit smoother. Then "slap" the dough and turn it over and knead it until smooth; this could take between 5 to 10 minutes. You can also mix the dough in a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. This takes about 10 minutes. Cover the dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest a room temperature for 2 hours.
• Cover a table (at least 36 inches square) with a clean tablecloth. Sprinkle the cloth all over with flour. Gently press the dough into a rough 12-by-12-inch square and then gently pull the dough into a large square, about 36 inches. Use a pair of clean kitchen scissors to cut the thicker edges off the perimeter and discard them. Allow the dough to rest to dry out just a bit, about 5 minutes.
• Adapted from "Pie it Forward: Pies, Tarts, Tortes, Galettes and Other Pastries Reinvented" by Gesine Bullock-Prado © Abrams 2012. Provided courtesy of Gesine Bullock-Prado. All rights reserved.

THE ULTIMATE MAKEOVER: SALMON EN CROûTE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Tip in the shallots and fry for 2-3 mins to soften, then add the mushrooms and garlic, and stir-fry over a high heat for another 3-4 mins, or until the mushrooms and shallots are golden and any liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated. Pour in the lemon juice - after a few seconds, that should have evaporated too. Remove from the heat, then stir in the watercress so it wilts in the warmth from the pan (see step 1). Stir in the dill and chives, and season with a little salt and pepper. Leave to cool.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. When the mushroom mix is cool, stir in the crème fraîche. Lay one of the filo sheets on the worktop with the short end facing you. Brush all over with a little of the remaining oil. Layer up 4 more of the filo sheets in the same way, brushing each with a little of the oil.
• Lay one of the salmon fillets, skin-side up, across the width of the filo, positioning it about one-third of the way up. Season it with pepper. Spoon and spread the cooled mushroom mix over the top of the fillet (see step 2). Lay the other salmon fillet on top, skin-side down. Season again. Fold the short end of pastry nearest to you over the salmon, then bring the other end over to completely enclose the salmon (see step 3), lifting it so the join can tuck under it. Fold both pastry ends over as neatly as you can.
• Brush the outside with a bit more of the remaining oil. Scrunch up the last sheet of filo, pressing it lightly on top in big folds (see step 4), then carefully brush with the last of the oil. Can be prepared 3-4 hrs ahead up to this point and chilled. Transfer the salmon parcel to the baking sheet. Bake for 25 mins until the pastry is crisp and golden. Check while it cooks and if the top starts to brown too quickly, lay a sheet of foil very loosely over it. Remove from the oven and let the salmon sit for 2-3 mins before slicing.

SALMON EN CROûTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and garlic with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until slightly softened. Stir in the spinach. Cook, stirring often, until the spinach wilts. Once wilted, stir in the cream cheese until melted. Stir in the parmesan cheese and the lemon juice.
• Place the sheet of puff pastry on a baking sheet. I like to lay a bed of creamed spinach right in the center, about the size (or slightly smaller) than the salmon filet. Season the salmon all over with salt and pepper. Place it right on top of the spinach.
• Wrap up the puff pastry, folding in all sides until the salmon is covered. Gently flip it over so the seams are on the bottom. Brush the pastry all over with the egg wash - on the tops and side. Score the pastry a few times on top.
• Bake the pastry for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden and crisp on the outsides. Remove and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Slice and serve!

SALMON OVER CREAMED LEEKS WITH APPLE BUTTER SAUCE

Steps:

• For the apple butter sauce: Melt butter in a saute pan and add apples, cooking over medium heat for a few minutes until they begin to soften. Add apple juice, orange juice and rice wine vinegar, cover and allow the apples to cook until very soft. Then uncover and allow liquid to reduce to about 1/3 of what you started with. Puree in a blender or food processor. Create a slurry by gradually whisking cornstarch into about 1/4 cup water and blend the slurry into the sauce. Return the sauce to the pot and allow to cook for a few minutes to thicken. Season with salt, if needed.
• Begin the creamed leeks while the apples are cooking.
• Heat the olive oil and butter in a medium saute pan over medium heat and saute onion until translucent. Deglaze the pan with wine and reduce until the liquid is almost all gone. (While you are waiting for the wine to reduce, start cooking the leeks.) Cook the leeks in simmering water until tender. Drain and set aside. When the wine has mostly evaporated, stir in the cream, season with salt and pepper, and lower heat to a simmer to allow to reduce and thicken. Strain this sauce and pour over the leeks and set aside briefly in a warm place.
• For the fish: Season the salmon fillets with coarse sea salt and both peppers. Place a little oil into the saute pan and bring to smoking point (you need a hot pan in order to get a crispy outside). Cook the salmon, skin side down leaving undisturbed (no peeking) for about 5 minutes, or until the skin begins to get crispy, then turn and begin cooking for 4 minutes more. This allows the surface of the fish to "caramelize." (You may need more time on the salmon depending on the thickness). You can, if you wish, finish the salmon in a preheated 350 degree F oven. However, DO NOT OVERCOOK THE SALMON. Once you touch the flesh and it springs back up, it's cooked. Remember, because of carryover cooking, the fish will continue to cook after it is removed from the oven.
• Reheat the apple butter sauce if necessary. Place 4 lengths of the creamed leeks on one side the serving plate, with a salmon fillet on the other. Spoon apple butter sauce on the fish and garnish with lemon thyme.
• For the apple butter sauce: Melt butter in a saute pan and add apples, cooking over medium heat for a few minutes until they begin to soften. Add apple juice, orange juice and rice wine vinegar, cover and allow the apples to cook until very soft. Then uncover and allow liquid to reduce to about 1/3 of what you started with. Puree in a blender or food processor. Create a slurry by gradually whisking cornstarch into about 1/4 cup water and blend the slurry into the sauce. Return the sauce to the pot and allow to cook for a few minutes to thicken. Season with salt, if needed.
• Begin the creamed leeks while the apples are cooking.
• Heat the olive oil and butter in a medium saute pan over medium heat and saute onion until translucent. Deglaze the pan with wine and reduce until the liquid is almost all gone. (While you are waiting for the wine to reduce, start cooking the leeks.) Cook the leeks in simmering water until tender. Drain and set aside. When the wine has mostly evaporated, stir in the cream, season with salt and pepper, and lower heat to a simmer to allow to reduce and thicken. Strain this sauce and pour over the leeks and set aside briefly in a warm place.
• For the fish: Season the salmon fillets with coarse sea salt and both peppers. Place a little oil into the saute pan and bring to smoking point (you need a hot pan in order to get a crispy outside). Cook the salmon, skin side down leaving undisturbed (no peeking) for about 5 minutes, or until the skin begins to get crispy, then turn and begin cooking for 4 minutes more. This allows the surface of the fish to "caramelize." (You may need more time on the salmon depending on the thickness). You can, if you wish, finish the salmon in a preheated 350 degree F oven. However, DO NOT OVERCOOK THE SALMON. Once you touch the flesh and it springs back up, it's cooked. Remember, because of carryover cooking, the fish will continue to cook after it is removed from the oven.
• Reheat the apple butter sauce if necessary. Place 4 lengths of the creamed leeks on one side the serving plate, with a salmon fillet on the other. Spoon apple butter sauce on the fish and garnish with lemon thyme.