Miso glazed salmon w/ citrus salsa

I'm a big fish fan. I could eat it everyday given the opportunity. I never really got into fishing though. Not so strange I guess - most of us aren't into cattle wrangling but still enjoy steak. But I digress. My favorite fish is definitely a trout but for versatility I don't think you can do better than salmon. It carries a mild flavor, smooth texture (regardless whether it's raw or well done) and retains it's moisture fairly well. All of which makes it a great vehicle for a variety of different sauces and preparation methods. This particular night I was yearning for a soy sauce base glazed salmon. But I wanted something semi-sweet to counter the saltiness.

Miso glazed salmon w/ citrus salsa

1/2 grapefruit, peeled, pith removed, and finely chopped
1 tomato, seeds removed and finely chopped
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1/2 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. finely chopped ginger
2 tbsp. finely chopped flat leaf parsley

salmon
2 tbsp. miso (soy bean paste)
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. honey

Step 1: Finely chop 1/2 grapefruit (peeled, pith removed), 1 tomato (seeds removed ... I found these colorful small tomatoes at a local market), 1/4 red onion, 1/2 clove of garlic, 1/2 tsp. ginger, and 1 tbsp. flat leaf parsley. Mix in bowl and refrigerate.

Step 2: Preheat broiler. Get yourself a nice fresh salmon fillet (3/4 to 1 lb. works well). In small bowl, whisk together 2 tbsp. miso, 2 tbsp. soy sauce, 2 tbsp. water, 1 tbsp. honey. Spray baking dish with cooking spray, place fillet in dish, and cover with sauce.

The sugar in the honey is needed to produce the "glaze" effect, but I tried to minimize it in this recipe so as not to make the entire dish too sweet. If you want to forgo the salsa, add another tbsp. of honey.

Step 3: Cook salmon in oven for 5-10 minutes depending how well done you like your fish. Remove fish from dish immediately so as to stop it from continuing to cook.

Step 4: Serve salsa on top of salmon.

Cooking and The Mountain: Part III

After hiking nearly 12 miles and 6000+ feet in elevation change, our legs were like silly string coming out of a can (although none of us wanted to admit it). With no chance of a massage, we decided swimming in South Branch Pond (pictured above) and nearby Howe Brook was a fun alternative to scaling another mountain.

Howe Brook is quite possible the biggest natural tease I've ever come across. Water flows through cuts in the rock collecting infrequently in deep prestine swimming holes that becon you to swim, relax, and soak the aching in your legs away. The catch? The water is painfully cold. Even in August you'll jump in and have this reaction. (We even had a contest to see which of us could stay in the longest. I won with a whopping 1 minute and 39 seconds.)

But who wants to relax anyway when there are rocks to jump off of? Plus sitting still isn't in our nature ... so we jumped in Howe Brook


and we jumped in South Branch Pond.


We enjoyed the last full day in the park and were ready to settle down to yet another glorious campfire and some dinner. At this point in any backpacking/camping trip it is a bit of a gamble to have fresh meat. Most veggies and fruit however are robust enough to travel but be careful, you don't want your backpack to become a juice machine. Furthermore, lugging them around gets to be a pain. That doesn't mean though that you have to resort back to the pre-packaged dehydrated food I described earlier. The idea is to concentrate flavors to maximize the "bang" for the weight and still replenish all those calories you just burned.

Pasta is a fantastic option here (just add water) but unless you are hardcore you probably want some sauce. Well here is a sauce that you can whip up at home that'll fit the bill for flavor and weight saving.

Backpacking Pasta & Sauce

2 tbsp. anchovy paste
2 tbsp. olive oil
3 tbsp. tomato paste (w/ Italian seasoning mixed in already)
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. capers
1/4 tsp. black pepper
4-6 oz. dried mushrooms (any kind will work)
4-6 oz. sun dried tomatoes
16 oz. pasta

(serves three hungry hikers)

Step 1: At home the night before leaving for the trip, mix 2 tbsp. anchovy paste, 2 tbsp. olive oil, 3 tbsp. tomato paste, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 2 tbsp. capers, and 1/4 tsp. black pepper in bowl. Put mixture in sealed container or Ziploc bag. Store in fridge until departure.

Step 2: At home before leaving, dice 4-6 oz. sun dried tomatoes. Pack tomatoes and 4-6 oz. dried mushrooms in separate bags.

Step 4: In camp, prepare pasta as directed. (No fire cooking this time.) While pasta is cooking, rehydrate mushrooms by soaking them in water.

Step 5: When pasta is done, drain carefully and mix sauce with pasta. Add sun dried tomatoes. Before draining mushrooms add 1-2 tbsp. of the mushroom water to the pasta. Drain remaining water and add mushrooms to pasta. Top with ample Parmesan cheese.

Put a knife in this trip. It was fun filled long weekend with great sights, wonderful friends, and delicious food. Back to FBC headquarters ... unfortunately ...

Cooking and The Mountain: Part II

... and up Mt. Katahdin we went. Hiking up this mountain is unlike anything I've ever done before because the trails are basically rock slides that require you to scramble hand over foot up boulders the size of cars. To use my friends sentiment, it is kind of what you dream of doing when you are eight years old (or 29 years old as the case may be).

We reached the summit, crawled across the Knife Edge (a narrow ridge of rocks with a precipitous drop on either side), and descended down the other side. The sweeping panoramic views were stunning and seemed endless. The entire hike took us eleven hours and prepared us for one of our favorite meals: "meat special". Not a very appetizing name I know but we couldn't just simply call it what it really is, a beef pot roast cooked over a campfire.

Meat Special
(for 3 - 4 people)

aluminum foil
2 lbs. stew beef
1 red pepper, chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 large potatoes, thinly sliced
2/3 lb. baby carrots
1 1/2 cup water
1 package of pot roast seasoning

Step 1: Cross two 12 inch long sheets of heavy duty aluminum foil. (One set for each person.) Divide all ingredients (except water) evenly on top of each set of sheets. Arrange such that potatoes are on the bottom of the pile.

Step 2: Partially fold foil to form a pouch capable of holding water around ingredients. Add water and form a packet with a tight seal.

Step 3: Place packet on hot coals. (The picture here demonstrates a bit of poor form. We were very hungry and too impatient to wait for the wood to completely burn down to coals. We later did some rearranging so that the packets rested on coals only.) Cook for 45 minutes.

Step 4: Remove from pouch and enjoy a fantastic pot roast stew next to the campfire. No dishes to clean up.

Part III coming soon ...

Cooking and The Mountain: Part I

And we're back. Sorry for the absence of any substantial postings in the past week but I took a bit of a vacation to Vacationland (that's Maine for those of you who don't know their state license plate slogans).

Besides cooking and photography, I am passionate about camping/backpacking/hiking. I've been doing it for over two thirds of my life (I am now moving to a fractional system when I talk about extended periods of my life ... it beats saying 20 years) and even spent two summers guiding wilderness trips in northern Maine. I'm happiest when I have a full backpack and heading to a remote mountain lake to camp.

Backpacking presents its own challenges when it comes to preparing meals. Toting pots, pans, knives, and (literally) the kitchen sink are not an option ... unless you are a Sherpa or have access to a Jackass (the kind of donkey, not your obnoxious friend). Sure dehydrated meals (think space ice cream without the novelty) are available that (supposedly) provide all the necessary calories and sodium needed for complete replenishment and just require adding hot water. But the consistency of these meals is typically a thick paste that lacks any form of the meal it is supposed to be. And then there is the flavor ... well, let's just say that if you advertise two seemingly polar opposite meals, Jamaican jerk chicken and seafood chowder for example, you should be able to differentiate the two by taste.

Despite my complaints about this food, it was the norm for my trips up until a few years ago when my friend Stephan and I (two engineers in graduate school) decided to experiment. We were definitely forced to eat some bad creations (canned shrimp comes to mind), but now each trip features at least a couple of classics that are still being perfected and a couple of new additions. When he, his brother, and I went up to hike Mt. Katahdin in Baxter State Park for a long weekend, we took full advantage of the allowance of a fire (a luxury in most parks) and continued our experiments.

We pulled in late on Friday evening and within minutes of setting up our tents, it began to rain; a tradition for us - no camping adventure is complete without rain. (Just for the record, I was camping at the bottom of the Grand Canyon and it rained.) Nevertheless we managed to get a fire going which was all we needed to get that night's dinner going: beer brats with green peppers and onions. This recipe is adapted from one of my favorites that my parents made on a regular basis when I was growing up. You can make it on a grill or in the kitchen on a winter day. It works nicely in the backcountry too.


Dice 1 green pepper and 1 onion. Place in foil pouch (double up some foil and fold it so that it can hold liquid). Pour 1/4-1/2 a can of beer into pouch and seal edges and corners. Set on fire for 30-45 minutes until pepper and onion are soft. Meanwhile, grill brats on fire grate.

This presumes 1) that you have a fire grate (another luxury not always avaiable) and 2) that you hiked in with beer. If there is no fire grate, put the brats in with the peppers and onions and place the pouch on hot coals (read: not directly in the flame ... you want nice consistent heat). They will cook nicely and all the flavor will be trapped. If you don't have beer, use water and definitely put the brats in with the peppers and onions for the additional flavor.

And oh yeah, that's a can of baked beans on the fire. Cook 'em if you got 'em.

If you do hike in with beer (or have some at the campsite), just be careful not to drink too much. Because being like this


before you hike up this


is never fun. Part II coming soon ...

Extra un-ordinary BBQ sauce

I'm still learning. Often times I'll get ideas in my head for food adventures that leave me wondering "is that even possible?" The other day for example, I was questioning what would happen if mayo replaced ketchup as the base for a BBQ sauce. I mean ketchup is good, and mayo is better. Simple logic right?

So I did some investigating and learned that this was FAR from a novel idea. In fact "white BBQ sauce" recipes are abound on the internet. So instead of spending hours perfecting my own, I went to a trusted source for a starting foundation; one of my idols in the cooking blog-0-sphere, Mark Bittman. Sure enough, his blog had a post about it from a contributor.

The sauce comes across as a North Carolina (think vinegary and thin) when it is sampled straight up. But baste some chicken in it over a grill and it adds just the right amount of spice and flavor with none of the vinegar bite. As an ode to the ketchup that once was in the BBQ sauce (and as a nice compliment) my roasted tomato salad was served alongside. My friends and I agree the sauce stole the show though. Thanks Corinne and Scott for sacrificing your grill and acting as guinea pigs ...

Extra un-ordinary BBQ sauce

1 1/2 cups mayo
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup apple juice
2 tsp. prepared horseradish
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Whisk all ingredients together in a large bowl. Put chicken on grill and liberally coat chicken with sauce periodically.

Filling bites

1) The street farmer. This guy is growing plentiful crops and raising livestock ... not in a rural area, but in the suburbs of Milwaukee. What's more is the guy's background is fascinating and he has some insightful comments about what it means for food to be "local". What happens though when the sheep wander into downtown Milwaukee for a beer?

2) Check it; window farming. A really cool idea for growing plants, especially herbs, for those of us apartment bound ... without a yard for gardens or grilling (double ouch).

3) "Calorie Counting Monkey's Live Longer" is the title of this story focusing on the link between calorie restriction diets and prolonged life. But we're missing the point internet; MONKEY'S CAN COUNT! We're in trouble. But seriously, I get the point about restricted the number of calories you intake but sometimes I just want to inhale my weekly lot at one BBQ. Then what do I do. I'll just take a cue from the financial system and live on credit ...

4) This is an enlightening (and often comical - in good and bad ways) blog that follows U.S. food policy. One post that I found particularly interesting (mainly because I'm often obsessed with the views you can get from Google Maps) exhibits aerial views of ten significant locations when it comes to where your food comes from ... assuming that you don't always buy local. The pictorial isn't particularly revelatory but it is fun to examine. More than anything it results in consideration of the origins of the food pulled out of fridge on a daily basis.

5) Alright, I know this story about the evolution of cooking shows is long, but Michael Pollan allows provides some excellent food for thought (sorry, I couldn't resist) ... and this is no exception. (If you don't have time to read the whole thing, you can listen to a good discussion of his main points on NPR.) The topics range from how cooking shows have made it "OK" for men to play prominent roles in kitchens to the modern "dump and stir" cooking shows. Even with all their popularity though, these shows are not motivating people to cook for themselves. Clearly the majority of the population is waiting for the scratch and sniff television.

Roasted tomato salad

I was anxious ... anxious to wait ... wait for two hours while I slowly roasted some tomatoes for a cool salad. Oh the paradoxes in this recipe. My imagination grabbed me one day and asked me "what would happen to tomatoes if you roast them at low temperature for a long time?".

I envisioned something of a cross between a sun-dried and fresh tomato - enough juice to remain moist with a slightly concentrated flavor. Sharing the pan were shallots, garlic, a thin coating of olive oil, and a sprinkle of salt. During the following two hours, a heavenly aroma filled the FBC World HQ that alone quelled my anxiety and made this recipe well worth the wait.

Roasted Tomato Salad

2 bunches of cherry tomatoes, halved
2 large shallots, quartered
4 garlic cloves, halved
2 tbsp. olive oil
1/4 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
1/4 cup feta cheese
Salt and pepper

Step 1: Preheat oven to 200. Toss halved cherry tomatoes with olive oil in large bowl. Rub the bottom and sides of a large, oven safe baking dish with two halves of garlic. (The dish should be large enough such that the tomatoes lie in a single layer.) Line bottom of pan with tomatoes, 2 large shallots (quartered) and 4 garlic cloves (halved) - be sure to distribute shallots and garlic. Sprinkle with salt.

Step 2: Roast at 200 for 2 hours. Take deep breathes during this time because your olfactory senses deserve something to counter the bragging your taste buds will be doing in a few moments. Remove from oven and carefully remove tomatoes to a bowl to cool. Place shallots and garlic on cutting board.

Step 3: Once cool, finely mince 4 garlic halves (2 whole cloves) and add to tomatoes. Cut the shallot quarters in half and separate layers. Add these to the tomatoes as well. Mix all of this together with 1/4 cup each of chopped fresh basil and feta cheese. Salt and pepper to taste ... although I found it didn't need much.

I'm pretty sure this would also make the basis for a kick-arse pasta sauce, so you might see this in one of my "rerun" specials. Stay tuned ... but by all means, enjoy now.