Our Harry and David Gift Box
I know it is Christmas time when a Harry and David package arrives on my doorstep. As a “picky” eater (I prefer knowledgeable, but, you might call me picky) I prefer not to eat foods with ingredients such as maltodextrin, dextrose, modified stuff, BHA, BHT, natural or artificial colors or flavors, or anything else I can’t easily pronounce. So, I often give away half of my gift basket. When Harry and David improve their recipes, I will gladly indulge in their sugary sweets.
But, they do some stuff right! Like smoked salmon, Oregon cheeses, olive oil crackers, and their famous Oregon pears. Those simple ingredients made for a fast, deliciously Oregonian snack.
This is one of the only years since moving to Colorado that we will not be heading out to Oregon for the holidays, so it was fun to eat like an Oregonian for a night with wild caught smoked salmon, some Tillamook white cheddar cheese (which we had at home, as usual), some Touvelle cheese from the Rogue Creamery (which I had never tried but will now look for in Whole Foods), olive oil crackers, and Oregon pears. Harry and David included something new in our box this year- some lightly candied walnuts with an ingredient list I could have made at home. They were a fantastic addition to olive oil crackers and the two cheeses. Yum!
So, though I’d like to see some higher quality baked goods and pre-prepared foods come out of Harry and David, I understand that they are concerned more about shelf-life than a healthy-life. I get it. But, they would be such a cool company if they took out some of those junky ingredients and made things more small-batch, crafty-style. Just an idea… take it or leave it. Either way, I enjoyed what I ate.
Maple Shallot Salmon
- At February 20, 2010
- By megan
- In Fish, Maple, parmesan, peas, Salad Dressing, Salmon, Savory Spice Shop
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This meal is Maple Shallot Salmon, brown rice with a Maple Shallot Dressing, and parmesan peas (a personal favorite of mine). I marinated the Salmon for 30 minutes prior to baking it at 375 for 20 or so minutes. I also decided to make plain brown basmati rice so I could use whatever was left over to make home made rice milk. So, I made a dressing to pour over the baked fish and cooked rice. Finally, my favorite veggie dish- boiled peas in freshly grated parmesan cheese. I could eat these peas every day.
Salmon Marinade Ingredients:
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 TB freshly grated ginger
- 2 TB soy sauce
- 1 TB water
- 1 tsp Aleppo pepper (which you can find at Savory Spice Shop)
- 2 green onions, chopped
I prepared the marinade in a small bowl and poured it evenly over my cold-water-washed, dried, and de-boned salmon that was sitting on a foil-covered flat baking tray. I preheated the oven to 375 and let the salmon soak in some flavors. Right before it went in the oven, I poured the juice of 1/2 lemon on top.
Meanwhile, I prepared some brown basmati rice, which took 45 minutes or so. I usually add something to flavor the rice as it cooks, but, making rice milk with the leftover rice prohibited that. Instead, I made this dressing to drizzle over the meal.
Maple Shallot Dressing Ingredients:
- 1 TB soy sauce
- 1 TB maple syrup
- 1 TB toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 TB dried ginger (fresh will work, of course. Just use a little less than dried.)
- 1 TB dried shallots (I bought mine, like ALL of my spices, from Savory Spice Shop)
- 1 green onion, chopped
- juice from 1/2 lime
A Fine New Year’s Eve Dinner
- At January 10, 2010
- By megan
- In appetizer, Cheddar Cheese, Oregon, party foods, Salmon, tapas, Tuna
- 0
On our holiday trip to Oregon, we were given some delicious homemade treats, such as canned smoked salmon, canned tuna (a family favorite), and a 100th anniversary cheese wheel from the Tillamook Cheese Factory.
Real, fresh caught, cooked, canned-in-its-own-juices, tuna.
My new dipping bowls, featuring artichokes marinating in olive oil from Italy (far right), roasted garlic puree (far left), and caramelized yellow onion with fig balsamic puree (front, center).
A simple salad with mesclun greens, tomato, and shaved carrot with a drizzle of caramelized onion balsamic dressing (made from my caramelized onion spread, which is just onion and olive oil, cooked on medium low until caramel in color and then blended. I added some fig balsamic vinegar, which was another kitchen gift I received, sea salt, and pepper to make the dressing).
The table- with my walnut and cherry baked brie, 4 yr old cheddar, marinated olives, sparkling water, and wine.
Leftover Maple Garlic Salmon with Wilted Spinach
Salmon is great the next day, especially cold, and crumbled on cheese and crackers or added to a salad. I paired the rest of my Maple Garlic Salmon with a wilted spinach, tomato, and fire roasted pepper salad and a fresh dressing.
The wilted spinach was super easy. I bought the spinach in the Boulder Farmers’ Market, and it of course looks different from the spinach you can usually purchase in Whole Foods. Also, it is now loud and clear that spinach should be consumed cooked, or at least partially heated up, to benefit from its nutrients while not allowing the spinach to leach nutrients from your body. Say goodbye to raw spinach…
I rinsed the spinach and threw it in a sauté pan, still wet, added some chopped farmers’ market tomato, and a fire roasted pepper (which I always keep in the pantry), some salt, and pepper. I let this cook until the spinach softened. No oil. No nothing. Took it off the heat, and plated it.
The element that ties this all together is the dressing.
Ingredients:
- 2 tsp Evaporated Cane Juice
- 1 TB Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1/4 cup Olive Oil
- 1 TB Honey Mustard
- a pinch of yellow Curry powder
- a sprinkle of cinnamon
Whisk the dressing together, pour it over the spinach sautée and the salmon, and you have a meal in just minutes.
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