Corn-Jalapeno Salmon Chowder

Serves 10

Ingredients:

8 ounces hickory smoked bacon, diced

3 tablespoons butter

2 shallots, finely chopped

1 white onion, finely chopped

4 celery ribs, finely chopped

1/2 to 1 jalapeno, diced (optional)

4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Freshly cracked pepper

2 tablespoons cornstarch

8 cups + optional 1 to 2 cups chicken or seafood stock

3 large russet potatoes, skin on, chopped into bite-sized pieces

2 cans yellow corn or 3 cups cooked kernels cut from the cob

2 cups half-and-half or heavy cream

1 1/2 to 2 pounds salmon, de-boned, cut into 1-inch cubes

Fresh chives or green onions, diced (garnish)

Cilantro, finely chopped (garnish)

Sweet pickled jalapeno or fresh jalapeno, sliced (garnish)

Method: In a large heavy-bottom pot over medium heat, melt butter and cook bacon until it’s just beginning to crisp. Add shallots, onions, celery, jalapeno, garlic, salt and generous pepper. Saute until vegetables are softened. Combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of stock in a lidded jar, shake well, set aside. Add the stock to the pot, bring to a simmer, stir in the cornstarch mixture and the potatoes and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until potatoes are just done and the soup thickens a bit. Add the corn, cream or half-and-half and the salmon. Return to a simmer for 2 or 3 minutes, cover, turn off the heat and leave the pot on the warm burner for 10 minutes, allowing the salmon to cook through. Remove the lid, taste to adjust the salt and add a cup or two of extra stock if the soup is a little thicker than you like. Serve garnished with chives, cilantro and sliced fresh or pickled jalapeno.

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Lemon-herb oil:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons of finely chopped mixed fresh herbs like chives, basil, thyme and/or tarragon

Zest and juice of half a lemon

2 tablespoons good olive oil

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Method: In a small pan, whisk all ingredients together until just warm. Pour over a hot fillet.

Originally published as part of “Your guide to a not-boring summer salmon dinner in four quick, easy recipes” on Substack.

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I asked Facebook about Romano’s and the post has going on 200 responses about favorite dishes. Tortellini in Alfredo. Stuffed mushrooms. Veal marsala.

Romano’s specialized in a kind of Italian- American restaurant cuisine that no one eats in Italy but that never goes out of style here. Tonight, there will be a wait at every restaurant in Anchorage that offers garlic bread, wine, and a menu that includes creamy seafood pastas, single-portions of lasagna served under rafts of bubbly cheese, and salads made of crisp iceberg lettuce, wedges of tomato, and a vinaigrette dressing made with dried oregano and wine vinegar.

But, maybe you’d like to have your ’80s romance at home? I offer you the main ingredient for many a Romano’s tribute pasta. Add shrimp, scallops, clams, smoked salmon (a little goes a long way), or top it with a sliced, breaded chicken cutlet. Turn the lights down and the Dean Martin up.

The key with this pretty simple recipe is to watch the heat. Keep it on the low side and pay attention; you don’t want butter or cream to separate. Also, don’t overcook the pasta, and it will not work with pre-grated cheese.

Restaurant-style Alfredo pasta

Ingredients  

• 5 tablespoons butter
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1½ cups cream
• 1½ cups Parmesan, freshly grated (do not use pre-grated Parmesan), plus additional to serve
• Freshly ground pepper to taste, plus more to serve
• Pinch of nutmeg (optional)
• 1 pound fettuccine, preferably fresh
• Chopped Italian parsley to garnish

Instructions 

1. Put a pan of salted pasta water on to boil. In a large frying pan, melt butter over medium-low heat and sauté the garlic until it’s just fragrant. Pour in the cream and, on medium-low heat, allow it to reach a gentle simmer and then let it reduce for about 5 minutes. Stirring with a wooden spoon, add 1 cup of Parmesan and stir until sauce is thickened and creamy. Remove from the heat. Stir in several cracks of fresh pepper and the nutmeg, if desired. Meanwhile, when the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook according to directions, until it is al dente. Reserve ½ cup of pasta water and drain. Put the sauce back over low heat and toss with the hot pasta and an additional ½ cup of cheese. If the sauce seems thick, add reserved water, a little bit at a time, until the noodles are silky. Serve with a sprinkle of cheese, chopped Italian parsley, and additional cracks of pepper.

This recipe was originally published in Edible Alaska magazine.

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I happen to have just such a muffin recipe in my back pocket. I never make it totally the same and tend to riff. You can too. Sometimes I add lemon zest, sometimes I skip. Sometimes I add just a tiny drop of almond extract and throw some slivered almonds in the topping. I often reduce the sugar to 2/3 cup when I use store-bought berries, which tend to be less tart. And, I use whatever dairy I have on hand for the liquid, including heavy cream, buttermilk or even plain yogurt or sour cream.

For a tidy look, when I’m using store-bought berries, I toss them in a little bit of the dry ingredients. This keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin cup and eases their tendency to bleed juices. It’s far harder to control those things with wild blueberries, but I still do the toss. Frozen blueberries should be added when they are thawed. Those are going to turn a muffin blue no matter what, but there’s something kind of nice about that too.

Essential Alaska blueberry muffins

Makes 12

Ingredients

For the muffins:

2 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup milk (can substitute buttermilk or sour cream)

1/2 cup (one cube) salted butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups fresh blueberries

For the topping:

1/4 cups flour

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons white sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon allspice

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cold salted butter

Method: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12-muffin pan with paper muffin cups. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Pull out a 1/4 cup of that dry mixture and set it aside in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, melted butter, milk, lemon zest and vanilla. Pour that mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined into a batter. In the bowl with the 1/4 cup of dry ingredients, gently toss the blueberries until they’re floured. Fold the blueberries into the batter. Now make the topping. Combine all the dry topping ingredients in a bowl. Using your hand, work the butter into the dry ingredients until it is broken down to balls slightly smaller than a pea. Using a cookie scoop or spoon, fill each muffin cup with 4 tablespoons of batter. Sprinkle each with a little less than a tablespoon of the topping. Bake for 20 minutes or until the top of a muffin springs back when you press it. Serve warm with butter.

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A very Alaska-feeling cousin of classic holiday beef Wellington, our salmon Wellington is a little lighter and brighter, but just as gorgeous and festive. It’s perfect for the center of a holiday table, especially if there are pescatarians coming for dinner.

The coolest thing about this recipe: It’s pretty simple and easy. Our frozen salmon is portioned already, so we made two smaller Wellingtons, but this recipe works just fine with one fat fillet. We painted the fish with Dijon and butter and then layered it in pastry with a rich, savory mixture of cream cheese, spinach and lemon zest. A little brush of egg yolk made it extra golden.

Because it’s so rich, the per-person portion is a little smaller than you might serve if you were grilling salmon. One hack for saving time on defrosting the pastry is to look for fresh pastry dough in the refrigerated section, which is sometimes available during the holidays. I found mine at Walmart. Instead of Tabasco, you might also try Barnacle’s Bullwhip Hot Sauce.

Salmon Wellington

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

About 24 to 28 ounces filleted salmon, skin and bones removed

1 1/2 tablespoons very soft + 1 tablespoon room temperature salted butter

1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 cracks black pepper

1 small white onion, finely chopped, no more than 1 1/4 cups

2 cloves finely chopped garlic

1 1/2 cups cups frozen spinach, thawed

1 cup cream cheese, softened

Zest of one lemon

Two dashes of Tabasco sauce

1 13-ounce sheet puff pastry; if frozen, it should be fully thawed

One egg yolk, beaten

Method: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, combine the soft butter, mustard, salt and pepper, stirring until combined. Set aside. In a frying pan over medium heat, melt the rest of the butter and saute the onion until it begins to soften. Add garlic and saute until the onion is transparent and very soft. Turn off the heat, stir in spinach, cream cheese, zest and Tabasco until well combined. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Prep the pastry. Lay the pastry sheet on a lightly floured piece of parchment paper or a silpat and roll it out so it’s about a quarter-inch thick. If you are using a full fillet, you will want to work with the whole or most of the piece.

If you are using two pieces of salmon, you’ll want to cut the pastry into two rectangles. To assemble Wellington, if you are using two pieces of fish, spread 1/3 to 1/2 cup of spinach mixture in the center of the rectangle of pastry, shaping it roughly to match the contours of your fish. Use more if you are doing a full fillet. Paint one side of the fish with the Dijon mixture and then lay it Dijon side down atop the spinach layer. Now paint the other side of the fish with Dijon mixture and cover with 1/3 cup layer of the spinach mixture.

Wrap the fish in the pastry dough the way you might wrap a burrito, folding in the narrower top and the bottom and then wrapping the sides into the center. Pinch the edges together and then carefully flip the pastry-wrapped fish over so that the seam is down. Crimp the edges, if desired, and decorate with a fish scale pattern, gently pressing the edge of a measuring spoon into the dough. Repeat with a second piece of salmon, if you are using two pieces. Bake for 30 minutes, until the pastry is puffed and browned. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before slicing.

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This recipe is made for using only leftover salmon or adding cold rice or potatoes, depending on what you’re working with. I like using chives and chive blossoms from my garden when they are in season, but you can use any fresh herb. The trick, if you’re using rice or potatoes, is to let them fry for long enough to get a little crispy before you add the salmon. I use a little water to steam the eggs and watch the time to cook them to my desired doneness. I have used Frank’s hot sauce and Barnacle Foods Bull Kelp Hot Sauce with the sour cream, but I like Tabasco best because it’s a classic.

Salmon hash and eggs with Tabasco cream

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons + 1 tablespoon butter

1 shallot, minced

1 1/2 cups leftover roasted potatoes, finely chopped, or leftover rice (optional)

3-4 cups leftover cooked salmon, bones removed, broken into bite-sized pieces

Garlic salt or other seasoned salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives, divided

Four eggs

Sea salt

2 tablespoons water

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon or more Tabasco or other hot sauce + more for garnish

2 chive blossoms, small flowers separated or 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs of your choice

Method: Melt a tablespoon and a half of butter in a large non-stick frying pan or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Saute the shallot until it is translucent and then add the potatoes or rice, if using. Do not disturb the rice or potatoes for 3 minutes or so, so the bottom begins to brown and crisp. Add salmon and saute, mixing with the rice or potatoes. Season with garlic salt and pepper and mix, scraping the pan bottom, for a few minutes until the salmon is warmed through. The fish should be further broken up and there should be some crispy bits from the bottom distributed throughout. Create four holes in the hash, so the bottom of the pan is visible in each. Divide the tablespoon of butter into four and melt a piece of butter in each hole. When the butter is melted, crack an egg in each hole and sprinkle it with salt. Now drizzle water over the pan and place a lid on it. Leave the lid on for roughly 2-3 minutes for an egg with a runny yolk. For over-medium, try roughly 6 minutes. For hard eggs, try about 8 minutes. While the eggs are cooking, stir the hot sauce into the sour cream. To serve, dot each egg with spicy sour cream, splash with extra hot sauce and sprinkle the pan with reserved chives and chive blossoms or herbs.

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I talked to him this week as I was eyeing my massive rhubarb plant for pie purposes because I was curious about Crisco, which my grandmother Lidia, from the opposite side of the family, used in her rhubarb pie crusts. He was emphatically anti. Too gross and chemically, he said. And, I wanted to know how to make my rhubarb pie gel better, as versions with flour and cornstarch hadn’t been great. Tapioca, he said. (He uses tapioca starch, but easier-to-find, quick-cooking tapioca works great, too.) And let it cool all the way. This is the key. I also read up on getting the pie’s sweetness right and decided it makes sense to cut it with strawberries. I learned a hack involving first, macerating the filling in sugar to release its juices, and second, adding a layer of sugar under the filling. And, I applied another general pie trick: I baked it on a preheated sheet pan to avoid soggy bottom. The result was, I must say, the very best rhubarb pie I have every made. Try it!

The Best Rhubarb-Strawberry Pie

Ingredients:

Two salted butter pie crusts (Here’s a GF crust recipe, too.)

3 cups chopped rhubarb

2 cups chopped strawberries

1 cup + ¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

¼ cup quick-cooking tapioca

1 egg, beaten

Sugar for sprinkling on top

Method: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and put a parchment-covered sheet pan on the rack to heat. In a large bowl, combine rhubarb, strawberries, 1 cup sugar and orange juice to macerate for at least 15 minutes. Add the tapioca to the fruit and stir to distribute evenly. While the fruit sits, roll out your pie crusts. Press the first crust into the pie pan. Sprinkle the additional ¼ cup of sugar onto the interior bottom of the crust-covered pan. Pour in the fruit. Cover with a second crust. (If you want to make a lattice crust, here’s a video tutorial.) If you aren’t making a lattice crust, prick the crust with a knife. Brush the crust with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake on the hot sheet pan for 55 minutes or a little longer, until the crust is golden and, importantly, you see the filling bubbling out and starting to gel. The pie will set as it cools. Allow it to cool completely before serving. 

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Salmon loaf recipes date back to when the Alaska Packers Association (APA) introduced canned salmon to home cooks at the St. Louis World’s Fair of 1904. The APA cookbook from that year, “How to Eat Canned Salmon,” contained not one but three salmon loaf recipes. All of them combine canned fish with a “panade,” or rich batter made of cracker or breadcrumbs, milk or canned milk, and eggs. The loaves are steamed or baked and served cold. Same for “Out of Alaska’s Kitchens,” another central part of the state’s spiral bound culinary canon. (That book, from about 50 years later, actually has four versions of loaf—all served hot.) The loaves appealed to Catholics looking for meatless meals during Lent, and thrifty Depression-era cooks because canned salmon was a cheaper meat.

This recipe riffs on APA’s “Salmon Loaf #3”—which is a very basic salmon meatloaf with eggs, breadcrumbs, and some chopped parsley. Only I didn’t use canned salmon—though you could. I used some older frozen salmon I had and tossed in a little smoked salmon to add flavor. You can skip the smoked fish if you don’t like it or don’t have any. The recipe is pretty forgiving and can tolerate a little more or a little less fish, depending on what you’re working with. Compared to the old school versions, I upped the fat, using cream instead of milk, along with melted butter. I added a little lemon zest and Parmesan cheese for salt and tanginess, along with hot sauce for vigor.

I landed on a recipe that is totally delicious—kind of like eating a slab of smoky, rich salmon burger with a buttery, crumbly top. Though it’s easy, it could work for a special occasion if you’re serving pescatarians. I highly recommend dunking a bite or two in tartar sauce.

New school old school salmon loaf

Ingredients:

16 −20 ounces frozen salmon thawed, bones and skin removed, finely chopped

¼ −⅓ cup smoked salmon finely shredded

¼ cup shallots very finely diced

1½ cups Saltines finely crushed, + 2 tablespoons for topping the loaf

½ cup Parmesan cheese grated, + 2 tablespoons for topping the loaf

2 teaspoons lemon zest

3 eggs, beaten

¾ cup cream

3 tablespoons melted butter + more for the pan

1 −2 teaspoons Frank’s hot sauce or other vinegar-based hot sauce

2 teaspoons fresh dill or parsley minced, for serving (optional)

Slices of lemon for serving

Tartar sauce for serving

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 350° F degrees. Butter 5×9-inch loaf pan. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl with a fork, working to break up any big salmon pieces. When the mixture is well combined, spread it into a loaf pan and sprinkle with cracker crumbs and Parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes until firm and crispy on top. Serve immediately with fresh herbs, lemon slices, and tartar sauce.

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For this meal, I use a jar of red Thai chili paste, which you can get at all major grocery stores, though Asian groceries have a better selection. I also use regular coconut milk. You could, I guess, use light coconut milk, but it isn’t as delicious and is more of a broth than a sauce. Fresh ginger brings a kick, fish sauce adds salt and funk, shallots give the poaching liquid depth and lime brings brightness. If you happen to have a line on lime leaves, which you can get at some Asian groceries, you could throw in a couple in lieu of zest. Thai basil is also a specialty grocery item, but you can use regular basil and do fine. I use 2 teaspoons of curry paste for mild to medium heat, but some of the elders in my family think it verges on too spicy, so adjust accordingly.

The real beauty of this dish comes when you plate the halibut up with crunchy peanuts, herbs and chili crisp. A version of chili crisp can be found on the table at Thai and Vietnamese restaurants. It’s sold in a little jar at most large grocery stores and there are many varieties at Asian groceries like Midtown New Sagaya. It’s also called “garlic chili crunch oil” or “chili crunch.” Usually, it’s made with oil, red chilis and crispy shallots, though ingredients vary and some versions include nuts or sesame seeds. It is totally worth an extra trip to have it in your pantry. I use it all the time to spice up fried eggs or smear on salmon before I grill it.

Thai-style white fish curry

Serves 4 or 5

Ingredients:

About 1 1/2 pounds halibut or cod, portioned into four to five servings, skin removed

Salt and pepper

2 large or four small shallots, minced

1 tablespoon neutral oil like avocado or canola

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 13.5-ounce can regular coconut milk

2 teaspoons red curry paste (use less if you are sensitive to spice and more if you like the heat)

1 teaspoon fish sauce

2 teaspoons brown sugar

Zest of one lime

1/4 to 1/2 cup water or chicken stock, optional

1/4 cup Thai or regular basil, julienned

Rice, enough for four servings, Thai jasmine or Calrose

For garnish:

Chopped cilantro, chopped basil, lime wedges, chopped peanuts, chili crisp

Method: Start the rice, cooking it according to package directions. Pat fish dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add shallots and saute until transparent and soft. Add ginger, saute until fragrant. Add coconut milk. Stir in curry paste until well combined, add fish sauce, brown sugar and lime zest, bring to a gentle bubble. Slide the fish into the curry. The liquid should come at least halfway up the fish portions. If it doesn’t, add water or stock and return to a gentle simmer. Cook 3 to 4 minutes and then turn the fish over, cook an additional 3 to 4 minutes or until the fish is almost cooked through, turn one more time. Remove from heat. Stir in basil. Allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes. The fish should continue to cook. Serve with rice and extra sauce. Garnish with herbs, lime wedges, chopped peanuts and chili crisp.

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But, I did figure out how to hit all the necessary pie notes — the inky blue, sweet/tart filling, the flaky, salty crust — with a smaller-volume pastry. Sure, a normal person might make a little tart or galette, but, as a child of the ‘80s, naturally I got way into making oversized Pop-Tarts.

If we’re going to be technical, this recipe might be more accurately called a Pop-Tart-inspired slab pie, because the dough is too flaky and delicate for you to pick up the whole face-sized thing and shove it in your mouth (sorry). To serve it, I slice it into about six squares and serve them with vanilla ice cream. My secret to a flaky crust is to use vodka instead of water, but it makes the crust really delicate, so if you want a little more sturdiness, use water. I also use a food processor to make the crust. Crust made by hand can also be a little more resilient.

You don’t have to use all blueberries either. I have supplemented bluebs with store-bought blackberries and frozen black currants. You can also do a red-filling version with raspberries, pitted sour cherries, currants, thin-sliced rhubarb, or a combo of all those, just adjust the sugar accordingly. I used 1/4 cup of sugar with my wild blueberries because I like a pretty tart pie. Oh, and I didn’t use sprinkles, which is of course customary on Pop-Tarts, but that doesn’t mean you can’t.

Big wild blueberry Pop-Tart

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups white flour

1 1/2 cups salted butter

1 tablespoon sugar

2-4 tablespoons ice-cold vodka or water

3 1/2 cups wild berries, drained of juices

1/4 to 1/2 cup white sugar, depending on the sweetness of the berries

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Juice of half an orange

One beaten egg

3/4 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons orange juice

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse flour, sugar and butter into a meal. With the processor running, drizzle in vodka or water until the ball coalesces. Dump the dough onto parchment and press it into a rectangle about the size of a greeting card. Wrap it in the paper and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.

Carefully stir berries with sugar, cornstarch and juice of half an orange, until the berries are all covered. They should be relatively intact and on the dry side. Roll the dough out on a large sheet of parchment paper into a rectangle that’s about 11 by 15 inches. Once you’ve rolled it out, stick it in the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes to make it easier to handle.

Pull the dough sheet out of the freezer. With the long edge of the dough rectangle facing you, gently pull the left side of the dough off the parchment and fold the dough in half like a book. Use a knife to trim the rough top, bottom and side edges of both sheets to leave you with crisp edges and two matching rectangles. Spoon the berries, leaving any liquid in the bowl, onto what will be the bottom rectangle, leaving about a half inch of space around all the edges. Cover the berries with the top dough sheet. Gently roll the edges in, all the way around the rectangle, and then press them together with a fork. Poke holes with your fork to vent the top of the tart and brush with beaten egg. Bake for 28 minutes, until golden.

Whisk together powdered sugar and orange juice into a frosting. When the tart is cool, spread it on, avoiding the edges. Allow it to set up for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with ice cream.

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