Here’s another use for the chili sauce (see previous post for Chili Sauce recipe) — basting your salmon filets!  Kinda Genius, I know, but we can’t let this great stuff go to waste!

So simple, this is all you need:

salmon filet

chili sauce

Coat the filet with chili sauce, good salt and freshly ground pepper.  Place into a pre-heated 350 degree oven and switch to broil.  Broil 5-7 minutes for until flesh flakes easily and cooked to your preference.

While preheating your oven, prepare the relish.

1 cup pineapple, diced

1 mango, diced

1/3 red onion, minced

1/3 red pepper

1 jalapeno pepper (for more heat) or 1/2 Poblano pepper (for less heat), diced

juice of lime

1 tsp. Himalayan salt

drizzle of olive oil

Combine all relish ingredients in a small bowl.  Stir gently to combine.

Serve with relish over salmon and give yourself a nice pat on the back!  See, this cooking thing isn’t so hard!

Can I just tell you how crazy good these are?  Good enough that when we have them, my husband says “why do we not eat this more often?”  So, so good!

Let’s start with the salsa so the flavors can come together while we do the rest.

Mango Salsa:

1 ripe mango, peeled, diced

1 ripe avocado, diced

1/2 cup minced red onion

1 jalapeno, minced (more or less according to your heat preference)

1/3 red pepper diced fine

1/2 cup fresh tomato, diced

juice of 1 lime (or 2 if they are stingy with the juice)

1 pinch of good salt (Himalayan pink salt or Celtic salt)

2 TBSP chopped cilantro (optional – you know if you like cilantro or not!!)

Place all salsa ingredients into a bowl, stir gently to combine.  Taste for seasonings.  STOP!  I know how good it is!  Save it for the meal, snitchers!  😉

Now, for the chili sauce.  Don’t leave this out.  It brings this meal up several notches and you can use the chili sauce in a great number of other dishes for great umami.  (Umami is the 5th flavor center.  If you hit all the flavor notes of:  sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami, you tend to be MORE satisfied with LESS!)

You will need a bag of dried Poblano peppers, called chile ancho.  They look like this:

Place a large non-stick skillet on low-medium heat.  Place as many as you can easily fit onto a single layer on the pan’s surface.  You are only wanting them to soften slightly so they are workable.  (They are pretty stiff and unyielding right out of the bag!)  Let the peppers heat until you begin to smell the oils releasing their flavor.  Some slight blistering may occur.  Flip the peppers to get both sides.  When they are pliable, remove from the pan using tongs.  Allow to cool just enough to hold (or use a kitchen towel to hold) while you remove the stems.  They will just pull right out.  Now, place the de-stemmed peppers into a blender or food processor.  Add 1/2 cup of freshly-squeezed orange or mandarin juice to the blender.  Drizzle in 2-3 TBSPs of olive oil, 2-3 cloves of garlic and 1 tsp. of good salt.  You want to turn this into a paste so you will need more liquid.  I add hot water, 1/2 cup at a time, until it turns into a soft paste.  Now, pour and scoop the entire contents of the blender back into the skillet.  Cook over low-medium heat to dry and concentrate the flavors.  It won’t need long, maybe 5-7 minutes.  Remove from heat and store in a glass jar.  Excess will store in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.  And a side note here, if you put this on a chip to try – it will be bitter.  It’s really not delicious by itself.  It’s ah-mazing in conjunction with a little sweetness or with a protein (like an omelet with chili sauce and cheddar cheese!)

This meal is simple but absolutely AH-mazing!  It’s 3 little processes put together to make for a lovely celebration or to make any day special.  The wild rice takes the longest to cook, almost an hour so let’s start with that.

1 cup wild rice

5-6 baby Bella mushrooms, chopped

2 shallots, minced

2 1/3 cup water or a combination of water and chicken stock

1 TBSP butter

Into a medium saucepan on medium-high heat, add butter to melt.  Add chopped mushrooms and shallots.  Cook and stir til tender, about 5 minutes.  Add rice, stirring to coat with fat and to get a little browning action (read FLAVOR).  Then, add your chosen liquid to the hot pan.  It’s going to steam up immediately so keep your hands and face back!  Bring it to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and place lid on pan.  Give it 55 minutes or until all liquid has been absorbed. Optional:  Stir in a few leaves of chard that have been sliced into thin confetti once the cooking is complete.  This makes it green and gorgeous and even more delish!

Now, the salmon!  Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place the salmon filets, skin side down, on your lined pan.  Sprinkle a coating of Old Bay with Blackened Seasoning over the top.  (If you have regular Old Bay, just add a bit of brown sugar, honey or molasses.)  If you have balsamic vinegar, brush it on and smear the spices around to coat all the way to the edge.  I used Con Olio’s Espresso Bean balsamic vinegar and a swirl of their Blood Orange olive oil.  Yeah, baby!  For a final flourish, sprinkle with garlic salt flakes.  Now, into the pre-heated oven it goes!  Switch from conventional heating to broil (the pre-heating will begin to cook the fish through while the broiler browns the top.)  This should take 6-8 minutes, but watch closely so it doesn’t burn or over cook.  You can find specialty oil and vinegar shops in larger cities.  I found Con Olio on my last trip to Austin and went a little beserk (in a good way!).  Here’s a link if to their website for online shopping:   http://www.conolios.com/

For the zucchini shreds, you will need approximately 1 zuke per person.  Just wash and shred.  So easy!  You are going to love this!   Heat a large skillet to medium high heat and add 1 TBSP coconut oil.  When the oil is shimmering, add the shreds.  Salt with good salt (Himalayan or Celtic Sea Salt) to taste.  Stir and coat all shreds for 3-5 minutes, or until preferred doneness.

To plate:  Create a bed of the zucchini and top with the broiled-to-perfection salmon.  Spoon the wild rice next to this loveliness and get busy!

My Dad is absolutely the most optimistic person I have ever met.  It is an adventure to simply be in his presence.  I have been told I have his smile, and maybe I do.  But, more likely, I think I have his inherent enthusiasm for life.  I would normally say “joie de vivre”, but he’s not French (neither am I) and he doesn’t go much for fancy talking.  When I say he is optimistic and enthusiastic, I mean he absolutely expects the best possible outcome from any situation.  This is a wonderful gift.  With this knowing, the outcome may or may not be what you are hoping for, but there is a deep trust that the Universe is in control and things are as they should be.  He’s a terrible planner.  Wait, maybe he’s a fantastic planner.  He’s a “planner” – but, you have to know that “the plan” will be changed numerous times.  Details, phone calls, what if’s and everything affecting “the plan”.  Maybe that makes him a really great planner?  I don’t know.  I have very rarely heard him speak badly of anyone.  If he did, I can guarantee he or she really did do something to warrant his comment.  He loves a good joke and can call up a dozen that apply to any given situation.  He loves to laugh and he laughs with his whole face.  His eyes light up, his mouth opens and out comes a sound of pure joy.  I love to make my Dad laugh and he always laughs at my jokes, no matter how corny.  Just as I have at his over my entire life.  He has amazingly good luck.  I believe this comes from the previously described expectation of goodness.  When you are throwing around that much positive energy, a lot of it circles back to you.  He looks for the good in people and  when he witnesses otherwise, tends to forget.  Seriously!  He just doesn’t quite remember most “bad” things that happen, especially if some time has passed.  We can talk about old ski trips and any sort of fun we have had but, the negative stuff is mostly just filtered out along the way.  It’s really a great way to live your life.  He’s generous, caring and smart (although he might disagree).  If you have been a friend of my Dad’s for a while, he’s going to remember your birthday and call you on that day to wish you a Happy Birthday.  If he loves you, he will sing.  His life has not been without some pain.  He lost his own Dad when he was in his early 30’s and a daughter, my older sister, almost 5 years ago.  But, he’s one of those people that make you think “Nothing bad has ever happened to this person” because that’s exactly what he projects.  I love him and so do a whole lot of others.  I just got really lucky in the Dad Department.  xo

I am not posting a picture of my stye.  It wasn’t a bad one and if you want to see an image – get to Googling!  Suffice it to say, they are painful red swellings on the eyelid.  Traditional treatment includes hot compresses and avoidance of eye makeup.  Or a trip to the eye doctor in severe cases.  I have stopped my last 2 styes in their tracks by using organic coconut oil at first symptoms.  Coconut oil has a myriad of uses and this may be my favorite.  It’s antibacterial, antimicrobial and antibiotic.  Basically, it’s magic!

We have used lots of different brands and have been pleased with almost all.  Just be sure you are getting cold-pressed, extra virgin, ORGANIC versions.  So, for stye treatment, first wash your hands thoroughly and remove any eye makeup.  Take a small amount (pea-sized) and allow the heat from your hands to melt it. Using a very soft touch, pull the bottom eyelid away (kind of like you are inserting a contact lens) and use your other hand to apply the melted coconut oil to the bottom of the eye and tear duct.  This is easier if you turn your gaze away.  Using the same soft touch, spread the coconut oil up underneath the top eyelashes and around the eyelid.  You will probably experience a haziness from the oil coating.  That’s OK.  The coconut oil should not burn or cause any discomfort.  I do this just before bedtime and then it doesn’t matter if your vision is cloudy.  Apply 2-3 times per day.  Forgo makeup and keep your hands out of your eyes, otherwise!  Styes are contagious and can be spread to the other eye – so wash hands well before touching unaffected eye.  Hot compresses are also helpful.  My favorite way to do this is using a steeped tea bag – especially chamomile or green tea.  Just squeeze the tea bag to remove excess water and hold the hot tea bag on the affected eye.  Be patient.  It may take a couple of days before all the swelling abates but if it seems to be worsening or excessively painful, seek care from your provider.