Lighten Up Already!

It's January 11th. Have you seen your resolutions lately?

For me at least, a week and a half is usually just long enough to forget that, just days ago, I proclaimed loudly in front of friends and family that this year will be different! My diet will make a permanent trend towards organic produce and away from french fries and my reward will be a diminishing waistline and contact with my long-lost abs. This year, I assure myself and those who love me, I will declare victory over my own worst instincts!

OK, well, first of all, the only time I would ever utter such nonsense would be after 2 cocktails and 6 glasses of champagne sometime after the ball drops on New Year's Eve. Secondly, I know myself waaay too well to ever make any such statement in public (or at least to ever make such a statement in public again). It's much more relaxing to fail when you haven't told anyone else you're trying. However, something about this year feels different. I think there might actually be some success in my future and I think I know why.

I think - if you can believe it - I finally managed to overfeed myself to such a nightmarish extent over the holidays that I am actually still full and am now craving only dry spinach and warm broth for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Fine, that's a stretch, but I'm not really joking. My holidays were so full of medium rare beef, crab dip, cookies, bourbon, risotto (thanks, Court), wine, shrimp, champagne, cookies, brisket (thanks, Angie), Mom's whipping cream pound cake (thanks, Mom) and well, cookies, that I seriously find myself aching for light, clean flavors and a general lack of richness, starchiness and bulkiness. That's correct...the same gal that was waxing ecstatic about Yorkshire Pudding just weeks ago! I know...no one is more surprised than I.

Still, it would be silly not to capitalize on these leaner tendencies, so I am doing my best to surround myself with the aforementioned spinach, etc. Accordingly, here follows one of my favorite recipes for salmon. We all know that salmon is wonderful for you with all of its lean protein and Omega-3 goodness, but several people in my life aren't overly excited by its distinct flavor. This recipe should take care of some of the "fishy-ness" without adding any fat or stuff like that. Plus, it is so delicious and so totally easy that you might just find yourself craving it instead of cheeseburgers. Resolve to walk into your kitchen this week and whip this one up. That's a resolution I think we can all live with.

Asian-inspired 5 Spice Salmon with Big Bang Apricot Glaze
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. Salmon fillet, skin on the bottom, cut into 4 servings
2 - 3 cups orange juice
The juice and zest of one lime
A splash or two of good, dark rum, if desired (you know I love my Mt. Gay)
2 T. Chinese 5 Spice Powder*

3 -4 T. Big Bang Apricot Glaze (recipe follows)

Instructions:
Place the salmon, skin side down, in a small baking dish that is at least 3" deep. Cover all but the very tops of the file ts with orange juice. Add the zest and juice of the lime and the rum (if desired). Turn the fish once just to make sure the tops are moistened with the juice. Once the fish is skin-side down again, rub 5 spice powder liberally & evenly over the top of each fillet. Allow fish to marinade in the fridge for at least 45 minutes but no longer than 3 hours.

Meanwhile, prepare Apricot Glaze as below.

To grill or bake the salmon:

On the grill: Remove the salmon from the marinade (and discard the rest of the marinade) and place it skin-side down on a preheated grill over medium-high heat. The natural oils in the fish should keep it from sticking, but keep an eye on it...the sugars in the juices can make it more likely to scorch. Allow to cook for about 5 minutes. Carefully turn the fish and allow it to cook for about 3 minutes. Turn it once again so that it is now skin side down again, and use a basting brush, paint each piece with a liberal amount of the Big Bang Glaze. Allow to cook for just another minute or 2 to allow the glaze to melt down a bit and permeate the fish. Remove from heat and serve immediately with (or on) a salad of spinach, sweet onion (like Vidalia or Maui), blueberries, and avocado in a light lime or Asian-style dressing of your choice. I can see my abs better already!

In the oven: Preheat the oven to 350. Remove the salmon from the marinade and place it in a 9x9" glass baking dish coated with non-stick spray or a tiny bit of olive oil. Bake the fish for about 15 minutes. check the fish and baste it with a generous amount of the Apricot Glaze and continue baking for 5 - 7 minutes depending on how well you like your fish cooked. Serve as above.


Big Bang Apricot Glaze (so named because it packs a lot of flavor! Good for use on lots of seafood, chicken or pork or as a dipping sauce for coconut shrimp or calamari among other things)

Ingredients:
3 T. Apricot Preserves (I use sugar-free)
2 T. rum (As ever, I use Mt. Gay. You may omit if you choose, but it cuts the sweetness of the preserves nicely)
1 tsp. fresh ground ginger
1 tsp. red pepper flake (you may use more or less depending on your heat tolerance)
1/2 - 1 tsp. hot sauce of your choice (as above)
1 tsp. lime zest (if you have chosen to omit the rum, add a squeeze of lime juice)

Instructions:
Stir together and allow flavors to marry for about 30 minutes before use. Keeps for about a week covered in the fridge. In addition to its uses as a glaze or dipping sauce, it really improves a boring turkey sandwich.


* - 5 Spice powder is a spice blend of cinnamon, ginger, anise, fennel seed, clove and licorice root sold in the Asian foods aisle of most grocery stores.