Pan Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze & Mustard Potato Salad

There's a reason why cookbooks are the shizznit. It's because the recipes are usually tried and true. That being said, it's still good to have someone in the kitchen who knows what they're doing. In this case, Chris tinkered with a balsamic glaze recipe from America's Test Kitchen, and boy was it flavorful!

The recipe:

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup orange juice (we used low acid)
  
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• 2 teaspoons of oil (we used canola)
• 2 tablespoons of butter (we used Country Crock)
  
• a pinch of dried red pepper flakes

1. Whisk pepper flakes, vinegar, juice and honey together in a bowl.
2. Heat a non-stick skillet medium high, sear salmon until nice and crispy (about 5 minutes). Remove from to a plate the let finish cooking.
3. Wipe out the skillet and turn heat down to medium.
4. Pour balsamic and orange juice mixture into the skillet and heat until bubbly.
5. Whisk in butter, turn down the heat, and reduce until syrupy. Salt and pepper to taste.
6. Pour over salmon and serve.

That's it! The sauce is light and tangy and matches great with the crispy skin and flaky meat of the fish. The pepper flakes give the glaze a heat that adds depth and complexity to this simple sauce. It's one of those glazes you can literally make up in minutes, which would probably taste good on light meat like chicken or pork.



As a side, we continued with the ATK theme, scouring for a recipe I've seen them prepare on television. Because I didn't have any herbs I decided to switch it up with what I did have on hand, and that's cilantro. (I looove cilantro!) You can find the original recipe at their website. I substituted what I had and did everything else the way the recipe called for. The way this recipe is prepared is the actual key to having great tasting slices rather than mushy bites.

The recipe:

• 2 lbs of small red potatoes, sliced in 1/4 inch thick slices
• 2 tablespoons of kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons of chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons of white vinegar
• 2 teaspoons of spicy brown mustard
• 1/4 cup oil
  
• 1 shallot, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced cilantro

1. Boil the potatoes in salt water and bring to boil, add 1 teaspoon of chopped garlic to water, reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are fork tender.
2. Drain and save about 1/4 cup of water that was used to cook the potatoes.
3. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.
4. In a bowl, whisk rest of garlic, vinegar, potato water, mustard and oil.
5. Add in cilantro and shallots.
6. Drizzle over potatoes and coat evenly and let sit to let the flavors soak in.
7. Transfer to a large bowl and with a rubber spatula, mix gently until everything is combined.

That's it!