Salmon Wellington

This is delicious, gorgeous food that you can make!  This will take at least an hour and a half so plan ahead but much of that time is just waiting time so you can prep the rest of the meal, open the wine and enjoy your company.  This will serve four people who like to eat.

• 1 large yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced

• 1 T butter

• 2 T Extra virgin olive oil

• 5 ounces baby spinach (chopped slightly)

• 2 T cream cheese, at room temp

• 1 salmon fillet, approx 1.5 lb, skin removed

• 1 t garlic powder

• Salt and pepper

• 1 package store bought puff pastry (usually 13-14 ounces), thawed according to package instructions

• 1 large egg

• Parchment paper – not everybody has this in house so I point it out here to make sure you get some before you start

Caramelize the onions: Heat butter and 1 T EVOO in a medium skillet, over medium heat.  Once butter melts and begins to sizzle, add onions and season lightly with salt.  Saute on medium for 4-5 minutes until onions become translucent, stirring occasionally.  Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are caramelized and golden all over.  This usually takes about 15 minutes.  Don’t rush this, caramelized onions are one of God’s gifts to us so get them right.  Transfer golden onions to a bowl and allow to cool at room temp.

Spinach filling: Wipe out the onion skillet but you don’t need to wash it now.  Add 1 T EVOO and heat over medium.  When oil is hot, add spinach and cook until wilted, 3-4 minutes, seasoning lightly with salt part way through.  Transfer to a small bowl and let cool for 5 minutes, drain any standing liquid.  Add cream cheese to spinach and mix with a fork, season with pepper.  Set aside. 

Salmon prep: Check salmon for any pin bones and remaining skin.  Trim to make a proper square or rectangle.  If there is a small flap of thinner meat and the salmon flattens on one end, you can trim the flap and place it on the thinner end to make the entire thing more even (see photo).  Sprinkle salmon on both sides with garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Puff pastry: Everything so far is the kind of simple stuff that Your Old Pal Pete can do but when dough or pastry gets involved, YOPP calls on the lovely and gracious Pete’s Mate because she’s got skillz.  

Transfer the puff pastry sheet to a lightly floured surface.  Check the size of your salmon and do some math.  If the pastry needs to be slightly larger to completely envelope the salmon, carefully roll it with a rolling pin until it is, using a bit of flour to prevent sticking.  Place the salmon, top side down in the center of the pastry.  Spoon on the creamy spinach mixture and spread evenly.  Add the caramelized onions in an even layer on the spinach mixture.  Fold the tops and sides of the pastry over the salmon and pinch dough to create a seal at the seam (see photo).  Line a baking sheet that can fit in your fridge with parchment paper.  Flip the dough parcel over (seam side down) and refrigerate for 20 minutes (this is really important, see below for the chemistry/physics explanation).

Oven: Preheat oven to 425 degrees and place a rack in the center position.

More pastry: Prepare an egg wash by beating 1 egg with 1 T water.  Remove chilled salmon package from fridge.   Brush egg wash over top and sides.  If some extra runs down onto the parchment, dab that off with a paper towel.  Use a sharp knife to score a diagonal grid on the top of the pastry.  Don’t cut all the way through, just half the depth of the pastry.  Your knife must be really sharp or else it will snag and tear the pastry.

Cook: Place pan in oven and bake until pastry puffs and is golden brown, 25-30 minutes.  

Remove from oven, carefully lift salmon package off the baking sheet and place it on a cooling rack.  This allows the bottom to stay crisp, if you leave it on the sheet the bottom will get soggy.  

Allow to cool for 15 minutes.  At this point it will still be warm and ready to serve.

YOPP thinks that any kind of baking is a mixture of magic and witchcraft (the good kind) and the science behind puff pastry bears that out, but the results are incredible.  Puff pastry is layers of a really thin, specialized dough, with butter between the layers.  I have no idea how those Frenchies (I assume it was them) figured out how to do that but good on ‘em. When it bakes, if the pastry is cold and the oven is hot, butter melting will create steam and separate the small layers, resulting in the puffiness and crunch.  You want to score the top of the pastry so that it can expand but make sure not to puncture and let some of that steam escape. 

Pete’s Mate isn’t really a fan of seafood but her mom, Grandma J is my salmon buddy if none of the kids are home.  I made this for Grandma J and me, and cooked some chicken for PM and we all had a glorious dinner with some great leftovers.

This recipe was adapted from one published in the Eating and Drinking section of the Wall Street Journal, weekend edition.  They have some great suggestions and provide a lot of detail on the how and why of it all.  The scientist part of YOPP really likes that!