September Cooking

In the Archipelago, September is the transition between summer and autumn. We will still get a day or two with a high of 89 or 90, but the thermometer is more inclined to explore the low end then the high. The garden is still giving up red plum tomatoes, green zucchinis and big aromatic leaves of oregano, sage, and basil as the nightly lows are comfortable without the air conditioning blasting.

It is a time of transition for my cooking too. Roasting and baking in the oven, and long slow simmering on the open burners for a hardy dinner, gradually replaces grilling in the backyard and serving meals that are more like an antipasti spread.

The turn of the season brings a different creative reference which is reinforced by the fact our 100 year old house has no air conditioning in the kitchen. In a way I like that; it keeps me more in touch with the seasons. Sharing dinner on the front porch as often as we do also keeps me in touch with the changes in the temperature and the weather in general. It is my greatest pleasure to share dinner with my family under the shade of the big ash tree; as the birds sing hidden in it’s leafy beams and the as big puffy summer clouds roll by.

With that in mind I would like to share with you my culinary journey through the first part of September. Every dish is centered on Salmon and for good reason. We have friends who have the fish flown from the fishery to the Archipeligo, all season long.

Day one, Wild Copper River CoHo Salmon baked in foil and flavored with white wine, fresh squeezed lemon and seasoned. The garnish of sweet red pepper was roasted on a small fire I made by the garden, which laced it with the taste of its’ smoke and the glowing embers. The fish was served on a bed of assorted greens, mixed with slices of carrots, red pepper, rutabaga and mushroom.

This was finished with a simple dressing of balsamic vinegar, walnut oil, cracked black pepper and coarse sea salt.

Day two, back in the garden making another fire. This time roasting big red bell peppers under an overcast sky that brought in cool, damp weather. With the mercury struggling to get out of the 60s the oven was back in vogue.

The peppers were cleaned and the insides lined with a thin slices of prosciutto rubbed with olive oil and sprinkled with a little thyme. Then it was filled with a seafood stuffing. Scallops, shrimp and clams were sauteed with chopped thyme and shallots, finished with a few splashes of dry white wine and folded into a pile of fluffy ricotta and a small portion of shredded fresh mozzarella. I put the stem back in place, brushed the outside of the pepper with olive oil and baked it until the flavors developed and came together in the transformative heat of the oven. It was sprinkled with cracked black pepper when served.

The prosciutto always has an interesting way of blending with other flavors when it is cooked and this dish was a great example of that.

Day three, an Italian spin on poached Silver Salmon. With another chill in the air again, polenta was on everyone’s mind. A creamy pile of yellow corn meal polenta perfumed with the pungent flavor of roasted garlic, dry porcini mushrooms and home made chicken stock was the starch of choice on one side. On the other side, the last of the garden tomatoes, basil, and first pickings of the garden’s onions, were quickly cooked up into a fresh, chunky tomato sauce. The salmon was seasoned with salt and pepper and a a few splashes of Orvieto wine when it went into the oven. I wanted the sauce and the side to add the major flavor elements.

Day four – Salomon comfort food that focuses on the rich flavor of the sauce. Fresh heavy cream from, Rolling Lawn Farms in Greenville Illinois, was infused with small diced, garden grown onions, hearty Pommery French Mustard from Meaux, whole grain, and finished with a dry, full bodied Chardonnay. Like the previous dish, the fish, Silver Salmon, was poached in the oven with no flavor additions other then salt and pepper. To keep the flavor profile of the sauce in the center of the plate, the fish and sauce was served with simple mashed potatoes, made with Rolling Lawn Farms whole milk, and butter imported from Italy. Paired with these fluffy mounds of potato was the sweetly earthy flavor of boiled, golden beets. Rich yet delicate flavor notes that harmonized perfectly.

This was a great start to my culinary month. I can’t wait to see where the rest of September leads me.

Happy cooking and thank God for all that you have.