Chef Michael Salmon - Join me in my Kitchen
With tomatoes ripening in my garden and leftover pieces of my sourdough bread accumulating in the freezer, it’s time to whip up a Panzanella Salad. I often elevate the salad to another level with the addition of cooked seafood. You can grill, poach, steam or sauté the seafood, just be careful to not overcook it. The other option is to buy seafood that is already cooked for you like crabmeat and shrimp to simplify this recipe.
We make these delicious cheese “puffs” on our foodie trips to the Catalonia region of Spain, where Manchego cheese and Serrano ham is abundant.
Semifreddo, in Italian, translates to “partially frozen.” It has a lighter texture, and is more like a frozen mousse than ice cream due to the incorporation of lots of air in its preparation. I make several versions of this classical Italian dessert by adding different ingredients for various flavor and texture combinations. Some of my favorite include: Pistachio, Limoncello, Raspberry, Chocolate-Hazelnut and of course this one made with Ricotta and Almond praline.
Hanger steak is a very flavorful and tender cut of beef and is very reasonably priced. It comes from the belly of the cow and is similar in texture and flavor to a flank steak. Rub the steak with ground rosemary steak rub and smoke with hickory or mesquite chips for about 15 minutes. I like to finish my hanger steak on a hot grill to sear the outside with a little charred texture and flavor.
As rich and gooey as a pecan pie, this tartlet features Macadamia nuts and Guava jelly. Guava is a tropical fruit native to the Caribbean that has a very unique and distinctive flavor and aroma. I can buy guava jelly at my local supermarket in the gourmet aisle. If you can’t find it in your area, try to find other tropical fruit jellies, but any flavor will work.
Gnocchi are small Italian dumplings usually made with potatoes. I have added fresh dill to the gnocchi dough which pairs nicely with the Maine lobster and cream sauce.
This is a good basic foundation recipe for fruit based dressings. My friend Carol gave me the inspiration for this recipe and introduced me to using papaya seeds in dressings. Experiment with other fruit combinations if you don’t see your favorite fruit here. These dressings will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.
This salad combines two of my favorite items: an amazing Honey and Walnut Dressing and the “ever-so-versatile” Cumin Spice Mix. Add baby spinach, walnuts, dried cranberries and Bleu cheese…how can you go wrong?
The first time I tasted these, I unanimously proclaimed them as my new favorite cookies. This cookie dough is quite coarse and when you make the balls, they may need a little extra effort to get them to hold together, but they are well worth the effort.
Maine scallops are amazing, especially when they are seared with a nice caramelized crust. I serve them with a cream sauce made from freshly picked Spring peas with slices of smoked salmon.
Join me in my kitchen as I prepare recipes from my two cookbooks, European foodie trips and explore new inspirations.
