salmon days

coho salmon, mango salsa

My friend Mo made me a salad with seitan on it once, way back in time, like when I was still living on Ramen noodles and baked potatoes. I was so poor, I considered it a treat if I could walk down to the bagel place attached to Green Mountain coffee next to the Nickelodeon Theater on Temple Street in Portland and afford to get a sesame bagel (toasted) with butter. On even better days, I would have enough money to purchase a slim paperback novel from the cheap rack at Longfellow Books in Monument Square. Books for a dollar. Brilliant.

And now I see precisely how white I am. Let me sweeten the pot: I would buy only classics, like Pride and Prejudice (Oh Mr. Darcy!), Of Human Bondage (Poor Philip!), Sense & Sensibility (The long-suffering colonel!), The Scarlet Letter (Whore!), Great Expectations (Estella, you bitch!), Jane Eyre (Who is in the attic?!), and House of Mirth (Why, Lily? Why?). I think I need to go listen to NPR on my way to the farmers market where I can purchase organic foods and hand-woven dish towels, the proceeds of which benefit refugees from Somalia. Maybe I'll swing by the cooking store to refill my decanter with artisanal olive oil and pick up a new Le Creuset dutch oven.

Let's go back to the seitan. I'm craving red meat. Hard. Right now. Gentlemen, block your eyes and skip down please if you're reading. I have the worst PMS and all I want is meat. More specifically, I want steak frites from Solo Bistro Bistro Bistro with sauteed mushrooms in a red wine reduction and a side of steamed spinach. And a Manhattan. And then a glass of super chatty full flavor in your mouth red wine. Make that two glasses. Hell, give me the bottle.

Gentlemen, you may come back now. But, you have to answer me one question: Why are you reading this?

I had it in my head that I could satisfy my craving for flesh with salmon--it's good for you and it's meat and it will satisfy my need to chew on something in a way that quinoa juuuuuust doesn't cut it.  So, I've been eating a pantload of salmon.

A couple of weeks ago, I was out with some friends and after a few drinks at The North Point, we ended up at the Grill Room. (I know. I know.) I glanced at the menu, saw a grilled salmon with cauliflower, and ordered it. Boom. No worries. I was avoiding the red meat.

My friend Kate ordered a grilled flank steak or maybe a hanger steak with a side of mashed potatoes. I was envious but proud that I had made the healthy choice.

When our meals arrived, I noted (with no small amount of pleasure) that my salmon would be served on a pile of butter with cauliflower pureed in butter and some other vegetable swimming in a pool of butter. Kate, on the other hand, was eating a straight-up grilled steak with potatoes. Lessons learned. 1) Read the menu more closely. 2) Sometimes a steak might be the healthier option. 3) I seem to be willing to break my boycott of the Grill Room, the Front Room, the Corner Room, and the new Boone's because the food is typically very good. But, he does sound awful.

shameless plug for client

Last week, Groom and I picked up a wild coho salmon filet from Whole Foods--I don't know that it's necessary to say it aloud, but wild is better than farm-raised for various reasons like fat content, nutrients, antibiotics, general ickiness, etc. Groom painted some honey on it and then pressed some ginger, brown sugar, garlic, and coriander into it. We broiled it and served it with mango salsa, courtesy again of Whole Foods.

ow

Then, this past weekend, I bought up some Ducktrap smoked salmon and we ate that as part of a picnic lunch at the top of Quantum Leap at Sunday River. We didn't hike it, but rather rode the Chondola up--come on, we're not animals. But, we did hike down the mountain. And, I did fall flat on my ass in a pile of mud. And, I was reminded very emphatically that yes indeed I do have a ruptured disc in my back and I need to drink a bottle of tequila, STAT. Lessons learned. 1) Pack hiking boots next time I go to Sunday River. 2) Watch my footing on loose ground. 3) Hiking sucks.

picnic

As the weekend drew to a close, I headed to Portland where I had dinner at a friend's house. She made the most delicious Sicilian-style eggplant and ricotta sauce from a recipe in Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking (such a great cookbook--the braised pork chops with two wines is super easy and super crazy unbelievable delicious). Needless to say, the eggplant dish, albeit vegetarian, was not vegan. I enjoyed every single succulent bite.

black seabass

But, while I was in Portland, I swung into Harbor Fish to pick up some more coho salmon that I had seen on the ice while strolling through downtown/working off my hangover on Monday. Unfortunately, I saw the fish while on my walkabout with my friend and by the time I had returned, it was gone. I briefly considered picking up some black seabass because Groom loves it so much but I'm still weird about cooking/eating a whole fish. So, I went back to Whole Foods to pick up some sockeye salmon. This time I prepped it in order to get over the heebie-jeebies that I always get when touching fish. Same treatment as last week, except that Groom made the salsa rather than purchasing it. Same amount of delicious. Check out the prep pictures below....

not gross not gross not gross

Groom's salsa

125 degrees

deeee-a-licious with stringbean fries

The reason I bring all of this up is that none of this salmon has helped curb my meat cravings. I haven't had meat since I started this vegan(ish), maybe more pescatarian (I am so sorry about that link but I couldn't stop watching it myself), ism, except for one night of Raclette at a dinner party. Raclette, if you're unfamiliar with it, works off the same concept in a lot of ways as fondue or shabu shabu. A grill in the middle of the table with some heat. You toss some meat and vegetables (vegetables, never veggies please) on the grill. You then put some cheese into a little dish and heat the cheese under the grill. Just look it up. It's wonderful. Marvelous. Fun.

I'm thinking about seitan tonight. I don't know. We'll see. I'm supposed to be watching my salt and sugar intake too and I'm failing miserably. I have a feeling seitan is high in sodium. And it feels like cheating. Maybe I'll make some tofu instead.

On the bad news front, the epidural didn't take. I talked to my friend Sara the RN at the spine place today--I am so glad she called with the follow-up instead of one of the nurses I don't know because I'll admit I got a little weepy and she was able to make me laugh--and it's looking like there isn't much more we can do. I'll be hearing from them again, after the doctor reviews Sara's notes from our conversation, so maybe I go in for another epidural? Maybe we talk about surgery? Maybe I live with this until the symptoms go away?

On the good news front, I lost seven pounds this week and our new kitchen is going to have a beautiful floor.