Baked salmon fillet & Caramelised apple clafoutis

Main: Salmon Fillet baked in puff pastry with leek, sultanas & ginger
Food Stuff (Mona Vale) Men only in the kitchen with Mark Holland

Dessert: Caramelised Apple Clafoutis
From the Complete Book of Modern Classics (Women’s Weekly) Pg. 353

Hi everyone, hope you have had a great week,

Well back in 2011 I was thinking along the lines of “real men wear aprons” and sent the MAV off to a cooking class with his brother-in-law. They learnt how to make two dishes. One was chicken and the other this salmon. At this men only cooking class the guys sat around and watched the demonstration whilst drinking a lovely drop from Spain. They had a lot of fun and I have waited expectantly ever since then for a home demonstration of these recipes – still waiting! Anyway I found the Salmon recipe in my folder of stray recipes and thought I would give it a go. Hey, it is meant for men to cook, how hard can it be????

I started by pricing the whole salmon, which was very expensive, and then decided to use the fillets (skinned and boned) which were on special. Once I had made the “stuffing” I placed one fillet on the pastry, put the beautiful mixture of leek and ginger with sultanas on top and then another fillet placing the thick end opposite to the bottom fillet. Gee – did that make sense?? Anyway they made lovely little parcels and of course you need to have fillets that are a similar size. These little parcels easily fed three people each so it really did work out quite economical. I prepped it all and put them in the fridge ready for baking. With the sauce, which is very light in flavour, they were delicious and served with a simple salad (yes, Mimosa-family favourite) they were quite impressive. They got a 7/10. (I actually think my average is dropping).

Dessert did not win too many fans. This is a shame but I think it is my own fault. I absolutely love Clafoutis and whilst I was very keen to cook it, I new time on this particular Wednesday was limited so cooked it the night before. Big mistake. This is one of those desserts that should be cooked just before eating. Sure, caramelise the apples in advance but do not add the batter until you are ready to cook and eat. Mine was somewhat rubbery when it should be light and cake like. The caramelised apples were delicious though. I served it with thick cream but ended up throwing out the left overs. Flunk! 4/10.

So bottom line here is definitely give the Salmon a go, it’s worth it but if you are thinking about the Clafoutis, then don’t do it unless you have the time to whip it in the oven just as you sit down for your main.

I am going to leave you with a quote from Julia Child –

“People who love to eat are always the best people”

Until next week,

From my table to yours with love.

Salmon Fillet baked in puff pastry with leek, sultanas & ginger

So simple all men could do it

1 -2 kg Salmon or Ocean trout (filleted, skinned & pin bones removed)
1 large leek (finely shredded & well washed)
1 large knob of ginger (peeled & grated or finely chopped)
1/2 cup sultanas
1 tbsp virgin olive oil
good knob of butter
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
4 sheets puff pastry
1 egg beaten
flour to dust working surface

Sauce Beurre Blanc

1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1/3 cup dry white wine
2 large shallots (very finely chopped)
3/4 cup unsalted butter (you can use up to a cup of butter it is to your taste)
S & P
1/2 cup cream

Heath oil & butter in a medium sized pan, add the ginger, leek & sultanas, stir until leeks become soft, don't overcook, season, remove from pan and set aside in a separate dish to cool. When cool, pour off any excess liquid.
Lightly dust the work bench with flour and place 2 sheets of puff pastry in front of you, slightly overlapping to create an oblong, seal the join with a little of the egg mixture.
Take one of the fillets and lay it in the centre of the pastry, season the salmon on both sides, spread the leek mixture along the centre of the salmon fillet, don't allow it to spill on to the pastry.
Place the other salmon fillet on top of the leek mixture, top to toe so that over all the length of the salmon is now the same thickness, this will ensure that it cooks evenly.
Season the top salmon fillet.
On another part of the workbench (also dusted with flour) join 2 more sheets of pastry with the egg mixture.
Egg wash the pastry around the salmon fillet and then place the second sheet of pastry on top of the salmon pressing down around the salmon to push out all the air.
With a pastry cutter or knife trim off any excess pastry, then place onto a non stick or lightly oiled baking tray.
Egg wash the pastry then bake in a pre heated oven at 180˚C for approx 45 minutes or until golden.
Remove from the oven, allow to rest for 5-10 minutes, slice into portions and serve with a sauce of beurre blanc

Sauce Beurre Blanc

Reduce the vinegar, wine, shallots salt and pepper in a saucepan over medium heat until the liquid has nearly gone.
Reduce the heat and whisk in the butter a tablespoon at a time finally add the cream.

Caramelised Apple Clafoutis

Cook as needed

6 medium green apples
50 g unsalted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar (firmly packed)
1/3 cup castor sugar
1/3 cup plain four
1/3 cup self raising flour
4 eggs lightly beaten
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup cream
80 g unsalted butter (melted, extra)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to moderately hot (200°/180° fan forced). Grease shallow 2.5 litre (10cup) ovenproof dish.
Peel, core and halve apples; cut each half into four wedges. Melt butter in large frying pan; cook apple, stirring, about 5 minutes or until browned lightly. Add brown sugar; cook, stirring, about 5 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly. Place apple mixture into prepared dish; cool 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine caster sugar and flours in medium bowl; make well in centre. Gradually whisk in combined remaining ingredients until smooth. Pour batter over apple mixture; bake, uncovered, about 40 minutes.
Serve hot with double cream; dust with icing sugar, if desired.

Baked salmon fillet & Caramelised apple clafoutis