Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Phyllo-wrapped Salmon

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
6-8 oz. salmon fillet
1 T prepared horseradish cream
8 sheets phyllo dough, defrosted
2 twigs of fresh dill (optional)
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Cut the salmon fillet into two slim pieces and season with salt and pepper. Mince your fresh dill and mix it in with the horseradish cream. Then spread as much as you want on top of each salmon fillet. Place one piece of salmon on top of four sheets of phyllo dough that you’ve brushed with melted butter or olive oil and then fold into a wrap like a burrito. Do the same with the other. Brush the exterior of both with butter to help it get golden brown. Place both salmon wraps onto a cookie sheet or baking dish and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of your fillets. Remove from oven and let cool. Then serve warm. Garnish with a wedge of lemon.

Makes two serving. Serve with sauteed or creamed spinach.

Pair with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc.

TIP: The salmon can get pretty hot being baked with a shell, so be sure to let it cool before biting into it and burning the roof of your mouth. Believe me, I learned the hard way.

WORKING WITH PHYLLO: Phyllo dough can be labor-intensive but it’s worth it to get the crispy exterior. Once you defrost your phyllo dough per the box’s instructions, then stack the amount of sheets you need. Then like a book, flip each one and lightly brush each sheet to make sure you’ve buttered every layer. It’s important to butter each layer because it won’t get crispy without either butter or olive oil. For your work area, layout some wax paper so you’ll have an easier time picking up your phyllo sheets.

4 comments:

NotSoccer Mom said...

what would you substitute for someone who doesn't like horseradish?

Single Guy Ben said...

I know, I'm crazy for horseradish. That's probably why I love wasabi too!

Anyhoo, you can substitute anything else creamy with a slight sourness to balance with the fish. For example, you can use creme fraiche or sour cream mixed with minced dill and maybe a squeeze of lemon. I just think it's nice to add some more moisture to the fish because the baked phyllo dough will be dry. Of course, you only need to make enough to spread it over the fish. You don't want to drown it, then the phyllo will be too soggy. Have fun experimenting!

Anonymous said...

I made basically this same dish but with a mustard cream sauce. The mustard cream sauce (going from memory on the amounts):

1/4 cup dry white wine (I used sherry)
1 tbl chopped shallots
1 tbl flour
1 c light cream
1 tbl ground mustard

In a small sauce pan, bring the wine to a boil and cook the shallots.

In a bowl, combine the flour with a small amount of the light cream to make a paste. Slowly add the remainder of the cream to avoid lumps.

Add the mixture to the wine and shallots. Bring to a boil. Add the ground mustard. Let the sauce thicken before serving.

Single Guy Ben said...

Mmmm, your mustard cream sauce sounds yummy.