Baked Potatoes With Smoked Salmon And Capers Food

CRISPY POTATO PANCAKE WITH SMOKED SALMON AND DILL-CAPER VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a small mixing bowl, combine the mustard, vinegar and shallots. Whisk in the canola and olive oils to emulsify the dressing, and then fold in the capers and dill. Season with pepper only, as the capers are salty.
• On the large-hole side of a box grater, grate the onion into a strainer set over a bowl. Then, peel the potatoes. It is important to work quickly to avoid potato oxidation. You do not want to store the potatoes in water, as the starch will be washed away. Using the large-hole side of the box grater, grate the potatoes into the strainer. Press out the liquid and discard. Toss the potatoes with the onions and season with salt and pepper.
• In an 8-inch nonstick saute pan set over medium-high heat, melt the Clarified Butter. It will seem like a lot of butter. Pack the potatoes into the pan, so that the layer is 1/2-inch thick. Saute the potatoes until the bottom just starts to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Carefully and gently flip the potato pancake onto a small plate browned-side up. Then slide the potato pancake back into the pan and brown on the other side over medium-high heat. Place in the oven and cook until evenly golden, another 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the potato pancake on a paper towel and cut into quarters.
• Roll the smoked salmon into rosettes. Top the potato pancake slices with the smoked salmon rosettes, a few dollops of creme fraiche and the dill fronds. Drizzle with the vinaigrette before serving.
• Heat the butter in a heavy-duty saucepan over very low heat until it's melted. Simmer gently until the foam rises to the top of the melted butter. The butter may splatter a bit, so be careful.
• Once the butter stops spluttering and no more foam seems to be rising to the surface, remove from the heat and skim off the foam with a spoon.
• Line a mesh strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth or gauze and set the strainer over a heatproof container.
• Carefully pour the warm butter through the cheesecloth-lined strainer into the container, discarding any solids from the bottom of the pan.

BAKED POTATOES WITH SMOKED SALMON AND CAPERS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Brush potatoes with 2 tablespoons olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and place on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until easily pierced with a knife, about 1 hour. Cool until they can be easily handled.
• Halve potatoes lengthwise and scoop out some of the flesh, leaving a small amount on the skins. Cut hollowed out potato halves in half so you end up with quarters.
• Melt butter and remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet and season with salt and pepper. Brush melted butter mixture onto potatoes and place back on the baking sheet.
• Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool slightly before filling.
• Drizzle salmon with lemon juice. Combine salmon, Greek yogurt, chopped dill, and capers until well combined. Spoon small dollops of filling into each quartered potato and garnish with dill fronds.

PASTA WITH SMOKED SALMON AND CAPERS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add orecchiette and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, 9 to 12 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine cream and onion in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Simmer for 2 minutes and remove from heat.
• Gently stir salmon, Parmesan cheese, capers, butter, and parsley into the cream mixture and serve over pasta.

CREAMY POTATO GRATIN WITH SMOKED AND FRESH SALMON

Steps:

• Heat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit/240 degrees Celsius. In a small bowl, mix 1 tablespoon of boiling water with the saffron and set aside for 20 minutes (longer is fine).
• Cook the potatoes: In a large bowl, use your hands to mix the potatoes with 2 tablespoons of the oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of pepper. Spread out on 2 large parchment-lined baking sheets (baking trays) and roast for 20 minutes, or until soft and caramelized. Set aside to cool.
• Cook the greens: In a large skillet with a tight-fitting lid, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the anchovy and garlic and fry just until the garlic is starting to brown, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add half the spinach, stir through for a minute to wilt slightly, and then add the remaining half. Cover for 1 to 2 minutes to wilt some more, then remove the lid and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until all the moisture has evaporated and the spinach has begun to dry out. Raise the heat as needed to cook off the liquid. Turn off heat and stir in herbs. Stir in half the capers and set aside.
• Using your hands, mix the fresh and smoked salmon with 1/3 teaspoon of salt in a bowl, separating the layers of smoked salmon in the process. Set aside.
• Make the custard: In a medium saucepan, whisk together the saffron and its soaking water, egg yolks, cornstarch (cornflour), lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper until smooth. Pour in the milk and cream and whisk until combined. Place over medium heat and cook, whisking continuously to prevent the custard from scorching or sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until steaming and starting to thicken. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• When ready to bake, heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit/200 degrees Celsius. To assemble, start by layering half the potatoes at the bottom of a baking dish. (A deep 8-by-8-inch square, 9-inch round, or 20-by-30-centimeter rectangle will all work.) Top with half the spinach mixture followed by all the salmon. Top with the remaining potatoes and then the spinach. Pour the custard over evenly and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the custard has set and is starting to brown. (If your custard seems dangerously close to the top of the pan, place it on a foil-lined baking sheet to catch any drips.) Remove from the oven and set aside for 5 minutes.
• In a small saucepan, combine remaining capers with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over high heat. (The oil should just cover the capers, so you may need to add a touch more oil, depending on the size of your pan.) Fry the capers in the oil for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until the capers have opened up and become crisp.
• Spoon the fried capers over the gratin, garnish with fresh dill, and serve warm with lemon wedges.

MINI POTATO BASKETS, SMOKED SALMON & TOASTED CAPERS #5FIX

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• In a large bowl, mix potatoes with 4 tablespoons of the olive oil.
• Spoon the mixture evenly into a 24-muffin mini-muffin tin. Press mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the molds.
• Bake the potato baskets until golden and crisp, about 15-20 minutes. Remove pan to cooling rack.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the capers and sauté until lightly browned and toasted. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate.
• Spoon cream cheese evenly into barely warm baskets before removing baskets from muffin tin. Place baskets on serving platter and top with salmon and toasted capers.
• Makes 24. Serves 8-12.