Mother's Day Menu

Smoked Salmon Parfait Two Ways

We have 2 versions of this recipe. One with roasted vegetables and the other with mashedavocados with lime. Both are below. And both are delicious. The avocado recipe is much quicker and does not require any cooking. In the vegetable version, we chose seasonal vegetables: cauliflower, broccoli, and fennel, roasted and pureed them — yum!!

Smoked Salmon Parfait with Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients:

Layer #1 (Roasted Vegetables)

• 12 ounce bag of fresh broccoli florets
• 12 ounce bag of fresh cauliflower florets
• 1 large fennel bulb, sliced (thick slices)
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¼ cup heavy cream or half n’ half (added at the end)

Layer #2

• 4 ounces smoked salmon, cut in small pieces

Layer #3

• 8 ounce tub of crème fraiche
• Zest of 1 lemon, juice of ½ lemon
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Place the broccoli, cauliflower, and fennel on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast in the oven for 25-30 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Let cool. Add to a food processor and pulse until smooth. Add the cream and puree.
3. Mix layer #3 ingredients together in a bowl.

Layering the parfait:

1. Vegetables, 2 tablespoons
2. Smoked salmon, 2 tablespoons
3. Crème fraiche, 2 tablespoons
4. Repeat layers, ending with crème fraiche on the top. Add a sprig of dill for decoration.

Smoked Salmon Parfait with Avocado

Avocados are best known for being heart healthy because they have “good” fats, monounsaturated fats. They are also high in folate and Vitamin E, which are both excellent for heart health. Antioxidants, lutein (good for eye health), vitamins A, C, B, E, and potassium are other good reasons to eat one avocado each day. 

Ingredients:

Layer #1

• 2 Hass avocados
• Juice of 1 lime
• ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Layer #2

• 4 ounce package of smoked salmon

Layer #3

• 8 ounce tub of crème fraiche
• Zest of 1 lemon, juice of ½ lemon
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Mash the avocados with lime, salt, and pepper.
2. Cut salmon into small bite-sized pieces.
3. Mix layer #3 ingredients.

Layering the parfait:

1. Avocado, 2 tablespoons
2. Salmon, 2 tablespoons
3. Crème fraiche, 2 tablespoons
4. Repeat, ending with crème fraiche. Add a sprig of dill.

Strawberry Basil Pizza

Ingredients

• Naan (preferably whole wheat, comes in packages of two -- you can also use toasted English muffins for miniature versions!)
• A few handfuls of Mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• 8-10 pieces Mozzarella di bufala (sliced thinly)
• 8-10 leaves of fresh basil (shredded in a chiffonade style)
• 6-8 strawberries (sliced thinly)
• Olive oil (for drizzling)
• Balsamic Vinegar (for drizzling)
• Black pepper (for sprinkling)

Directions

1. Drizzle some olive oil onto the naan, then pre-bake in the oven at 400 degrees F (or whatever temperature package directions indicate) for about 8 minutes, until firm and crispy (but not too brown!).
2. Place a generous layer of the shredded mozzarella on the baked naan, just enough to cover the surface. Next, place the slices of mozzarella di bufala over the top, making sure not to overcrowd the surface. We want to leave room for strawberries! Add the thinly sliced strawberries to the remaining surface area (sure, you can cover a few pieces of the di bufala if you like).
3. Bake in the oven for 6-10 minutes, until the cheese has melted and the naan has begun to brown. Remove, drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, top with the sliced basil, and crack some black pepper over the top.