salmon wellington

We had a special dinner tonight at the restaurant (I found out later I was cooking for Reynolds Price and friends as a part of the celebration of his fifty years at Duke). I needed something I could do that would allow me to serve up thirty plates at once, so rather than grilling the salmon, as we usually do, I opted for this recipe, which allowed me to use the oven. It worked out wonderfully.

First, for the mushroom duxelles:

1/2 onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
16 ounces mushrooms, sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
salt and pepper

Put the onion and the mushrooms in a food processor and blend until they are almost pureed. Heat the oil in a skillet to medium heat and add the onion-mushroom mixture until it is tender (five minutes or so). Turn up the heat and continue cooking until the moisture is gone and the mixture is almost like a paste. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Set aside to cool. (You can even make this a day ahead.)

1 package puff pastry sheets, thawed
4 salmon fillets, about 6 oz. each
1 egg, beaten well

Cut the pastry sheets in half and stretch them out, or roll them to activate the dough. Put 1/4 of the duxelles in the middle of the sheet matching the shape of the salmon fillet. Place the salmon with the best side down, facing the duxelles. Fold in the short sides and then wrap the long sides over to seal. Turn over and place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with the other three fillets. Brush tops with egg wash. Cook in a 350 oven for about eighteen to twenty minutes, depending on how well done you like your salmon to be. Let the fish rest for about five minutes before serving.

Peace,
Milton