Party Supplies

Do your fish justice!

Just because a food is healthy and enjoys a fabulous texture and generally delicious flavour doesn't mean that you should not put your energy into getting a great recipe to do it justice. I recently attended a fancy dress party held by my long time friend Pamela. She had recently purchased and moved to a beautiful new house with a great vista to a peaceful lake, and I thought it was a fantastic idea that she decided to make a fun inauguration party like that. Leaving Frank (my husband) in charge of helping out with the party supplies, I spent my time obsessing about how to properly dress up for the occasion.

Believe it or not I spent days picking the perfect fancy dress, but I finally found one that was great. I was also quite proud that I had convinced Pamela about making sure that seafood would be the main course for the evening. I've been telling her about the great benefits of seafood for ages, but with the recent research I ran into the other day I finally had the proof I needed to convince her.

I recently read this article on that CNN website about how seafood is indeed healthy and all of that cancer talk was in fact just pure exaggeration. The original claim was that it contained toxic substances like mercury, dioxins and PCBs, and that this factors did not make it worthwhile even though seafood is high on Omega-3 fatty acids. In case you don't know, the Omega-3 acids are a really popular topic nowadays, most likely because of their ability to reduce the risk of heart disease. Well, the Dr. Hogarth of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said it himself The benefits of cardiovascular health from eating seafood, including farm fish, far outweigh the risk of cancer from environmental contaminants, so now there's no excuse to skip the delicious seafood.

So I was all dressed up and ready to have fun (and eat a tasty dinner) but, oh dear, Pamela really disappointed us with the cooking. Apparently they weren't used to cooking seafood and so they ended up with a really bland recipe that left a (literal) sour taste in our mouths. I love the little girl, but with all the resources you can find on-line nowadays it's an absolute crime that she couldn't come up with something nice to pamper us with. I hope that is a lesson to you all potential hosts, cook healthy food and get some decent recipes!

Cajun Salmon Steaks

Substitutes: Halibut, Swordfish, Tuna
Good for 2 servings.

Need:

1. 2 salmon steaks, 1 inch thick, each 6 to 8 oz.
2. 1/2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
3. 1/2 tsp. lemon juice
4. 1/4 tsp. cajun spice blend or blackened redfish seasoning
5. 1/2 medium-sized green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced
6. 1/2 medium-sized red or yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced

Do:

Arrange steaks side by side but in opposite directions in a baking dish; press the thin belly flaps together, against the other steak. Rub the top of each steak with 1/4 tsp. worcestershire sauce and 1/4 tsp. lemon juice, then sprinkle or rub with 1/8 tsp. spice blend. Sprinkle peppers over fish in center of the pan.

Cover dish tightly with plastic wrap and microwave on high (full power!) until flesh is nearly opaque, maybe 5 1/2 to 6 minutes. (Cook one steak 3 1/2 to 4 minutes; 4 steaks about 7 minutes.) Let salmon stand, still covered (puncture plastic wrap if tightly sealed), 1 to 2 minutes longer.

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