STEEMIT CULINARY CHALLENGE #12: "Sea, Sand & Salmon" - An Original Recipe

Considering I don't eat anything processed or artificial I wasn't expecting to be challenged much by the 'Purely Paleo' theme, but I was wrong, and this pleased me immensely as it meant I had to re-think my initial ideas!  I didn't know that much about the Paleo diet, only that it's about natural foods, so I mistakenly assumed it was more similar to my own diet than it actually is.  I tend to eat a lot of grains, beans and legumes for example, but none of these are Paleo.  I also use white potatoes quite a bit (staple food in Ireland), but was surprised to discover these are generally not eaten either (some people do, but strictly Paleo don't).  So my original idea of a creative fish pie with blue mashed potatoes for the 'sea waves' topping (white spuds mashed up with red cabbage) had to be re-thought.  You all know by now I like to have a theme for the Steemit Culinary Challenge, and of course since I'm doing a fish dish this week the theme had to be the ocean.

The obvious choice was sweet potato, but orange wasn't the colour I wanted, so I decided upon another popular Paleo replacement for potato (and grains) - cauliflower.  This is a great versatile vegetable as it can be mashed or riced, depending on what you want.  I decided to rice mine and stir in a little turmeric, to give the appearance of golden sand.  I also love the subtle woody floral taste of turmeric, which goes lovely with salmon.  The salmon was fresh from the local market, caught just off the coast here in Donegal, which I believe is a good choice as Paleo prefers wild-caught rather than farmed fish.

Another challenge was the parsley sauce, as I would usually make this with whole cow or goat milk and wholewheat flour, but neither are Paleo so I had to look online for a solution!  I live almost 2 miles from the nearest shop and don't drive, so popping out for ingredients for the SCC is just not an option, I must use whatever I already have in.  Thankfully just last week I'd bought some arrowroot powder to make my toxin-free homemade deodorant (amazing stuff, check it out here) and this can be used to thicken sauces as well.  I luckily also had some almond milk as my son can't tolerate lactose so well.  Problem solved, hooray!

One final comment - all the ingredients here (and in all my recipes) are organic, with the exception of the arrowroot which isn't organic but is labelled non-GMO and free of artificial additives.  Keeping the body free of harmful toxins is an absolutely essential element of the Paleo diet, allowing the body and all its organs and systems to function as they should.  Major health problems result from toxins we consume/absorb, so for optimal health it's necessary to eliminate all sources of these toxins.

What you will need:

2 x fresh wild salmon fillets

400g cauliflower

1 tsp turmeric

200g butternut squash

1 large onion

3 cloves garlic

1 tsp coconut oil

100g red cabbage

For the parsley sauce:

50g butter

2 tblsp arrowroot powder

2 cups almond milk

2 tblsp parsley

1/2 tsp unrefined salt

1 tsp black pepper

Pinch nutmeg

For the almond pastry decorations:

25g butter

50g ground almonds

1 egg yolk

Method:

To make the pastry: cut the butter into small chunks and add to the ground almonds.  Rub the butter into the almonds using your fingertips.

Ad the egg yolk (saving the white to use in something else, such as meringues or omelette).  Mix well to form a firm dough.

Use pastry cutters or shape with your hands into the desired shapes - here I have made starfish and fish tails.  I only need one of each but made extra just in case!  This was my first experiment using ground almonds in place of flour for pastry, so I didn't know how firm or crumbly it would be - as it turns out I found the resulting pastry firm enough (though handle with care!).  I brushed the shapes with egg to give them extra hold, and baked in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes until golden-brown.  Set aside to cool.

To make the parsley sauce:  In a pan on low heat, melt the butter.

Add the arrowroot powder and whisk in until there are no lumps.  It will resemble thin custard.

Add the milk and whisk continuously until the sauce thickens (about 3 minutes or so).  Stir in the parsley, salt, pepper and nutmeg.  Set aside.

Cut a chunk of butternut squash (about 200g), peel and cut into small pieces.  Steam for 15 minutes until tender.

Whilst the squash is steaming you can bake the salmon.  Put the fillets into an oven-proof dish and add a little water to prevent the fish from drying out.  No need to season as the parsley sauce will add all the flavour this salmon needs.  Bake in a preheated oven at 190 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes until cooked but not over-done.

Peel and dice the onion, and finely dice the garlic.  Saute in the coconut oil on moderate heat for 5 minutes until softened.

Cut off the desired amount of cauliflower florets and roughly chop into small pieces.  Put through a ricer, food processor or manual veg chopper like mine, to get the cauliflower into very small bits resembling rice.

Stir in the turmeric.

Finely slice the red cabbage.

Using your hands, break the salmon into flakes and put into an oven-proof dish, along with the butternut squash, onion and garlic.  

Pour over the parsley sauce and spread evenly until everything is nicely covered.

Put the cauliflower on top, and arrange the cabbage over half of the cauliflower.  This is (supposed to be) the sand and the sea!

Bake in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 20-30 minutes until hot all the way through.  Arrange the pastry decorations on top all ready to serve and impress your spouse/family/friends!  

As usual, much appreciation to @englishtchrivy for hosting this challenge and giving us all a good reason to get creative! 

Many thanks also to this week's judge @kiwideb for giving us a challenging theme, and to the sponsors @smooth, @sirwinchester and @knozaki2015, and to everyone else involved in this challenge. 

For more healthy vegetarian, sugar-free, additive-free recipes for meals and snacks, please follow me!  Thank you!

Logo kindly created for me by @papa-pepper