Day 9: Smokin' Hot Salmon

I don't go out to eat very often, mainly for budgetary reasons since feeding two teenagers and myself at a restaurant adds up very quickly. When I do go out, my one criteria for choosing a restaurant is that they have to serve something I can't make at home, which usually means we are eating at an Asian hole-in-the-wall or having In-n-Out burgers.

I haven't been out to eat since this experiment started and so I was ecstatic when The Geek offered to take me out for a sushi lunch today (and I only had to drop one hint!). We both love sushi and so it is no small affair when we go to our favorite All-You-Can-Eat sushi bar. That, combined with a late lunch hour, meant neither of us were very hungry at dinner time.

Here's where having a well-stocked pantry and a hot smokin' BFF comes in handy. The Geek hot-smokes salmon. (The smoked salmon that is typically available commercially - the thin fillets that are slimy - is made by a process known as cold smoking.) Hot-smoked salmon has the texture of cooked fish and fantastic smoky flavor. The Geek just happened to have a smoked fillet in his refrigerator along with some cream cheese and Triscuits. Voila! One of our favorite snacks!

I dug around in my freezer and found a wedge of brie and a wedge of Stilton (a mild blue cheese). I spooned some of AB's cranberry sauce (leftover from Thanksgiving) over the brie and microwaved it until just heated. The tangy cranberries and sweet honey  complemented the mild French cheese perfectly. Fuji apple slices rounded out the meal.

Busy Mom Modifications and Tips

• I frequently make a "meal" like this on nights when we're short on time or I am not in the mood to cook. I buy a loaf of crusty Italian bread, warm up some cheese (usually brie plus another, more pungent cheese such as chevré or blue cheese), add some fruit, and a protein such as summer sausage or smoked salmon. My daughter refers to this as our "European Peasant" dinner.
• TGI Friday's, the chain restaurant, used to serve a brie appetizer that I still like to make at home. Put a generous chunk of butter on top of the brie, sprinkle with slivered almonds, and bake in a 350F oven until the butter has melted and the cheese is soft. The melted butter is perfect for dipping fresh bread.
• Other fruit that goes well with this meal include firm pear slices, grapes, and cantaloupe.

My Shopping List

Nothing - we made do with what was on hand.

The Tally

• The day's tally: $0
• Total this month so far: $143 (Thanksgiving was an expensive meal!)