Salmon with Fennel and Pernod

This is what magic tastes like. CLASSY MAGIC. From Bon Appetit.

Ingredients

• 1.5 tsp crushed fennel seeds
• 1/2 stick butter, softened
• 2 tbsp minced red onion/shallot
• 1 large fennel bulb with fronds -- bulb sliced into 1/4 inch pieces, fronds chopped
• 2 salmon fillets
• 2 tbsp Pernod

Make compound butter: In a large non-stick skillet, cook fennel seeds over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 1.5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and let cool. Mix in  butter, shallots/onion, 1 tbsp fennel fronds, and whatever salt and pepper you want. 

Melt 1 tbsp of this mixture into the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced fennel and 1/4 cup water. Cover and cook until fennel is tender, about 8 minutes. Uncover and let cook until fennel is brown, another 2 minutes. Remove fennel from skillet and set aside.

Season salmon. Add the rest of the compound butter to the skillet and let it melt. Add salmon, skin side down. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Turn salmon over, add 1/4 water to skillet. Cover and continue cooking another 5 minutes. 

Slide salmon over to one side of the skillet and add the cooked fennel back in. Add Pernod, some more butter, and the rest of the fennel fronds. Heat through.

Serve with the rest of the butter on top of the fillet.  

Thoughts:

UGH DELICIOUS. This was our first foray into cooking salmon and it was the best-cooked salmon I've ever had. I give all credit to BA. I would eat this all the time if it weren't so complicated. Dan says it was amazing and he's right. Not much to say here. Go make this. Dan edit: we actually used the salmon cooking instructions from Serious Eats. It yields a really crisp salmon skin that is super delicious. I don't think we actually cooked it 5 minutes and flipped with water. I think we cooked it just like the Serious Eats post.

Disaster Index: 1/10 but actually like -2/10. Can we do that? We just did.

Fennel and Greens Soup

Sometimes you just can't have enough soup. That time is all the time.

Ingredients

• olive oil
• salt and pepper
  
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 lb mixed leafy greens (kale, swiss chard, mustard greens, collards, whatever)
• 6 cups stock
• oz spinach
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• garnish of dill or fennel

Heat oil and butter and add salt, fennel, onion, and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are slightly browned, 7-8 minutes. Everything should be soft.
Add leafy greens (no spinach yet) and stock to the pot and simmer, uncovered, until greens are tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in the spinach and cook until just wilted (maybe 1 minute).
Puree the soup in your blender or by using a stick blender. Return to heat and add the heavy cream and lemon juice. Heat on low until desired temperature.
Also good with Parmesan cheese.

Thoughts: Delicious, but I can't get enough vegetable soup. This is my favorite style of soup -- cook everything, blend it, return to heat and add dairy. It's a pretty simply formula, and one that yields awesome soup every time. I don't think Dan is nearly as crazy about soup as I am, so he probably wouldn't give this a 1, but it was pretty much a 1. I'll give it a 2 just to prevent arguments.

Disaster Index: 2/10

Couscous with Fennel

and other vegetables?

Ingredients

• 1 large fennel bulb, cubed
• 2c chicken broth
• 1c water
• 2c couscous
• 2x zucchini, chopped
• 1c grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/2c raisins
• carrots?

In a pan, add oil and the fennel, zucchini, and any other vegetables that you want to have in your couscous.  I can't remember what we put in.  Once the fennel is tender (about 8 minutes), add the broth, water, and raisins.  Bring to a boil, then  stir in the couscous.  Remove from heat and cover for 10 minutes until the couscous has absorbed the water.  Add grape tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste.

Thoughts: We first made this with just the fennel and found it lacking, so we added all the other vegetables and the raisins.  I think it turned out really well, though I believe Claire wasn't as fond of it.  This has less to do with the quality of the recipe and more to do with her distrust of couscous.  This was incredibly easy and really good.

Disaster Index: 1/10