Oven Roasted Salmon with Parmesan-Mayo Crust

Recently at the Saturday morning farmers’ market in Decatur, we picked up some fresh eggs from a local farm. You might ask, “now what does that have to do with salmon?” Thanks for asking, because I’m having a heck of a time getting this post started! Well, I’m not a big egg-eater so I needed to come up with some other uses for the eggs. Also, I have a bottle of great-tasting olive oil from Kasandrino’s …eggs plus olive oil equals mayonnaise! (I’m getting to the salmon…) Next thing you know, I have a big jar of homemade, lemony mayonnaise with no real plans for using it. (As you can see, I was not thinking too far ahead last week.) Thankfully I ran across a sale on salmon and put the mayo to great use!

Coating the salmon with a mixture of mayonnaise and Parmesan cheese and oven-roasting it resulted in an unbelievably moist, buttery fish with all kinds of good flavors. I will be making this again…and soon!

This basic mayonnaise recipe does not make a very thick mayonnaise, since I use the whole egg instead of just the yolks. You can also adjust the taste of the mayonnaise to your preference, by trying different oils and different acids (vinegars, lemon or lime juice, etc.), or adding herbs. Go crazy with it!

Ingredients for Salmon

16-20 ounces salmon fillet(s), skin on

Kosher salt/ freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons mayonnaise, preferably homemade

2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

additional Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

a few dashes of sweet paprika

Ingredients for Basic Olive Oil Mayonnaise

2 whole eggs, at room temperature(*See Note below)

1 to 1 1/4 cup oil (I used 1/2 cup olive oil and 1/2 cup almond oil)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon salt

freshly ground black pepper, or pepper blend, to taste (I like Florida Seasoned Pepper

*Note: For thicker mayonnaise, use 1 whole egg plus 1 egg yolk

Mayonnaise Instructions:

Place the eggs in a blender or small food processor. Blend the eggs alone for around a minute, so they will be ready to adsorb the oil. Add lemon juice, dry mustard and salt, and mix in with the eggs. With the blender running, SLOWLY start adding the oil, a few drops at a time, until the liquid begins to thicken up some; then you can start adding the oil in a thin, steady stream. Continue blending until all the oil is incorporated. Season the mayonnaise with salt and pepper, to taste.

**Raw Egg Warning… to reduce the risk of salmonella or other food-borne illness, use only fresh, clean eggs with intact shells, from a trusted source. Avoid contact of egg white/egg yolk with outer shell.

Salmon Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425F. Line a shallow roasting pan with foil. Rinse the salmon with cold water and dry thoroughly with paper towels, and place in roasting pan. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Mix the mayonnaise and Parmesan cheese in a small bowl. Spread completely over the salmon. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese on top, and add a few dashes of sweet paprika.

Roast for 12-14 minutes (depending on thickness of salmon). Remove from oven; carefully slide a wide spatula between the skin and meat to separate from the skin, and serve!

When you experience as much music as I do, you cultivate a healthy list of artists you need to listen to, but haven’t yet. One of mine was Roberta Flack. Sure, I had heard her for years on the radio, but never actually listened to an album. Boy, that was a mistake! We put on First Take one evening, and we both were completely blown away by it’s brilliance. This was her debut from 1969, and her phrasing, song selection and piano work certainly don’t sound like a beginner! Contains the classic “First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”, her version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye” and more. With Ron Carter on bass and Bucky Pizzarelli on guitar, this is an understated jewel of a record.

Her newest release, Let It Be Roberta – Roberta Flack Sings The Beatles looks like a winner. That sublime voice coupled with those songs? How can you go wrong?