One of our family’s favorite fun holidays is Saint Patrick’s Day, yes even though we are not Irish. My best friend Liz told me once, that everyone can be Irish on Saint Patrick’s day, and she is Irish, so I’ll take it!!
When I was growing up I always looked forward to Saint Patrick’s Day, every holiday really. It was located on the calendar right in between Valentine’s Day and Easter. Best by far is that, like Thanksgiving, there was a traditional dinner to look forward to, corned beef, boiled red potatoes, carrots, and cabbage. My Mom always served this dinner with a fancy mustard and clover themed chocolate cupcakes with vanilla frosting, YUM!!
This year however, will be the first time our traditional Saint Patrick’s Day meal shall be upgraded. My husband Pierre thought it would be a fabulous idea for us to give up meat entirely for lent. YIKES!! The saving grace is that we can eat fish, just not beef, pork, chicken, turkey, etc., you get the idea.
How was I going to save our Saint Patrick’s Day? Pierre said we could make the corned beef dinner after Easter, essentially move the feast of Saint Patrick’s Day to a different day. That is like watching a football game on demand a month later. I still wanted the feel of Saint Patrick’s Day on Saint Patrick’s Day!!
What do people say, that necessity is the mother of all invention? Well that saying works with recipes too!! Thanks to my husband’s intense commitment, I created a new recipe to share with you!! This new recipe is healthy, gluten free, one that we can feed to our pescetarian friends, will work perfectly for this approaching Irish holiday and for dinner any day of the week!!
Spiced Apricot Ginger Wild Salmon
Copyright 2016 by Amy Rota-Poulin
Brine Ingredients:
½ gallon of spring water
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 tablespoons ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup Himalayan sea salt
1 cup raw organic apple cider vinegar
A 2-3 pound wild sockeye salmon fillet
Directions:
In a pot over medium high heat add the spring water, cinnamon, cardamom, coriander, ginger, nutmeg, brown sugar and Himalayan sea salt. Whisk and bring to a simmer until the brown sugar and Himalayan sea salt are dissolved. Remove bring from heat and refrigerate until cool.
Meanwhile in a large glass baking dish place the raw wild sockeye salmon skin side down in the dish. Pour the cool spiced brine and raw organic apple cider vinegar over the salmon. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to marinate for anywhere from 2 – 10 hours. I do not recommend leaving it overnight.
When you are ready to cook the salmon, remove it from the brine and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Pat dry and place skin side down on a lightly olive oiled baking pan.
Pour the Apricot Ginger Glaze evenly over the top of the salmon bake for 25-30 minutes until edges are bubbling and the salmon is thoroughly cooked. Remove from oven and serve with your favorite sides.
For Saint Patrick’s Day we are serving this delicious flavor infused wild salmon with boiled savoy cabbage, and boiled sweet potatoes with plenty of gourmet maple mustard on the side.
Love & Happy Cooking,
Amy
