Thursday night: Salmon cakes, roasted potatoes, sauteed summer squash

It wasn't planned this way, but last night somehow ended up being a big cooking night.The salmon cakes came about because we had some meat from salmon backs that really needed to be used up (I'm not sure why I thawed these earlier in the week, but there ya go.). The other two dishes are an attempt to stay on top of the CSA box.

Salmon Cakes with Basil Vinaigrette

The vinaigrette here is adapted from "Jean-George's Vinaigrette" in FStoS.

for the salmon cakes:
2 cups flaked cooked salmon
1 stalk celery, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 cup good bread crumbs
fresh lemon thyme
two big spoonfuls mayo
sweet paprika
salt and pepper
1 egg, lightly beaten

Combine all the ingredients except the egg, mix gently, and adjust seasonings.
Gently stir in the egg.
Form four patties and let them stand in the fridge for a while to firm up.
Sautee in olive oil until each side is nicely browned.

for the vinaigrette:
1/4 cup balsamico
2 tsp honey
1 small clove garlic, crushed
8-12 basil leaves (CSA box), julienned
4 Tbs canola oil, 2 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs hot water
salt and pepper

Combine all the ingredients except the water in a food processor/blender and blend on medium high until emulsified. Add the water in small portions, blending each time to make sure everything stays nicely emulsified. Adjust seasonings.

Serve the hot salmon cakes with a bit of vinaigrette spooned over them and the rest in a bowl on the side.

These turned out really nicely; I'm very happy with how the vinaigrette complements the salmon.

Roasted Potatoes

Quarter a bunch of small potatoes and toss them in a baking dish, salt and pepper liberally, add olive oil, and bake at 425 until they're done. Stir every 10 minutes or so. A couple minutes before they are done, add a small amount of chopped fresh rosemary.

The potatoes I used for this were from our CSA box and they were amazing. That's a funny word to use for potatoes, but they were really, really good -- with a substantial, creamy texture and great flavor. mmmmm

Sauteed Summer Squash

For this I used cubed summer squash (CSA), very coarsely chopped wax peppers (CSA), chopped garlic, and diced onion. I sauteed these in olive oil for a couple minutes with some sweet paprika, salt, and pepper, added chicken broth and a bit of white wine, covered and simmered until the squash was soft. A minute or two before serving, I added some fresh thyme and marjoram.

On a normal night, this would have been a star, but last night it was overshadowed by the other goodness on the plate. :-)