Kilted Kitchen, Salmon Patties and Starfruit Pie

Throughout my ramblings, you'll have noticed mention of several commercial spice blends that I use commonly in The Kilted Kitchen. Of course you can make your own spice blends for various things, and I'll share some of mine with you later. But these blends are hard to beat, and are widely available from ethnic markets and megamart seasoning sections,. They can also be purchased through the internet for those of you who can't find Everglades seasoning in North Dakota, for example. These blends can -- individually and collectively -- give you a wide range of flavor profiles. There's nothing worse than boring tasting food. Liven up your dinner table!

Spice Blends

Cavender's(tm) -- Greek seasoning. Add to ground lamb for homemade gyros

Old Bay(tm)  -- a kitchen standard for seafood and poultry since 1939

Everglades(tm)  -- www.everglades seasoning.com -- mild but tangy, like Florida itself

Sazon Tropical(tm)  -- www.badiaspices.com -- 1 pkt in a pot of rice makes the best 'Spanish Rice'!

Sazon Complete(tm)  -- www.badiaspices.com -- a great 'everyday' blend

Italian Seasoning -- I like Rachel Ray's for it's touch of fennel

Tony Chachere's(tm)  or Paul Prudhomme's(tm)  blends -- for that Cajun/Creole touch

Garam Masala -- an explosion of general Indian flavor for veggies, soups, stews, meats

Chinese Five Spice -- the scents of Asia -- add to soups, poultry and more

Here are other herbs and spices that I consider quintessential to any good kitchen.

Dill                                                                      Star Anise

Black Pepper                                                    Cinnamon bark, not ground

White Pepper                                                   Cloves - whole

Kosher Salt                                                       Allspice - whole berries

Ginger - fresh and dried                              Saffron - for the best paellas

Thyme - fresh and dried                             Chili Powder

Basil - fresh and dried                                  Sage

Oregano - fresh and dried                          Garlic - fresh

Cumin - whole seeds and powdered

Cardamon, green or black, whole pods or seeds

Paprika - Hungarian or Spanish, smoked and plain

Next week -- sauces, and other liquid flavorings in The Kilted Kitchen.

Salmon Patties

This comfort food goes back a way in our family. I remember my Mom making some version of these when we were little kids 'back in the day'. That long ago we had to cut them with flint knives, of course!

16 oz can of Red or Pink Salmon

1 bunch Green Onions, diced

1-2 Tbsp minced Parsley

1+ cups crushed Crackers - I favor Ritz(tm). Or use panko.

2 Eggs, beaten

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp Dill

1/2 tsp Old Bay seasoning

To drain, or not to drain, that is the question. I favor draining the salmon once you de-can it. Others want the juice. Place in a large bowl and start flaking the fish with a fork. Add the other ingredients, mixing each in turn. Form into patties and fry gently until golden and crispy on both sides. Serve with (my favorites) rustic smashed Golden potatoes and steamed frozen peas. Makes 4-6 large patties.

When I made the Smashed Potatoes I added about a 1/4 cup of Ricotta cheese, a couple tablespoons of butter, and a splash of half and half.

Lemon-Starfruit Cream Pie -- No Bake

This pie uses the basic no-bake pie concept: fruit juice mixed with sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese.  A simple, easy and tasty make-ahead dessert with a million variations.  I've made Barbados cherry, lemon, key lime and now this lemon-starfruit.  Good with pureed or juiced orange/tangerine, mango, peaches/nectarines, grapefruit, cherry, loquat and similar soft fruit.  I'll bet it would also be good with apples/apple juice and pureed pears.  Off-season, juices or nectars of many fruits are available,and would work well in this concept -- be creative!!

4 small Starfruit, ripe but not mushy soft.

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk

8 oz Whipped Cream Cheese

4 oz Meyer Lemon-Starfruit juice (see below)

1 prepared Pie Crust, savory or sweet

Chop up the starfruit (about 2 cups of pieces) and simmer with 1/8 cup brown sugar and a splash of water until the fruit is tender (10 minutes). Cool, then seperate juice and fruit.

Combine 1/4 cup of the cooked starfruit juice with 1/4 cup Meyer Lemon juice (or regular lemon juice if you can't find the good stuff). If using regular lemon juice, mix a bit more starfruit juice and a bit less lemon, to make it sweet/tart, not tart/sweet.

Whisk together the juice with the sweetened condensed milk and then the whipped cream cheese; fold in the reserved fruit and pour the mixture into the pie crust. I used a leftover rolled-up frozen pie crust and pre-baked it. This would also be great with a graham cracker or Oreo crumb crust. Refrigerate at least 6 hours -- overnight is best. 

 If you want extra calories or pizazz, top with whipped cream or Cool Whip(tm), curls of lemon zest or cooked star-slices of starfruit.