Monday, January 19, 2015

We're Growing!




I am delighted to announce that Leslie Budewitz is joining us at Mystery Lovers' Kitchen! Leslie goes way back with Daryl, Sheila, Peg, and me. In fact, all the way back to the days when none of us were published. We all met through the Guppies, the Sisters In Crime Chapter for unpublished writers. Of course, all these years later, we have met face to face at conventions. It's an odd feeling meeting someone you've only known through a cyber connection. We instantly became old friends!

Leslie writes the Food Lovers Village Mysteries. Her first book in that series, DEATH AL DENTE, won the Agatha award for Best First Novel in 2013. And now, she is also writing the Spice Shop Mystery series. It debuts in March with ASSAULT AND PEPPER. In addition, Leslie won the Agatha award for Best Nonfiction in 2011 for BOOKS, CROOKS AND COUNSELORS: How to Write Accurately About Criminal Law and Courtroom Procedure. 


You're probably wondering who is leaving. No one! But Cleo will be cutting back to two posts a month. Not to worry, Cleo will definitely still be around. In fact, she's taking over our special seasonal pages. Keep an eye on the left sidebar where we'll be posting a link to recipes that we recommend for holidays and celebrations. Leslie will be posting the first, third, and fifth Tuesdays of the month, and Cleo will be posting on the second and fourth Tuesdays.

And now on to a recipe~

Seems like I'm on a roll with recipes that have few ingredients, are easy to prepare, and cook relatively fast! After trying out some less than desirable recipes, suddenly I've stumbled upon some that are so simple and delicious that they will become part of my no-brainer quick fixes.

I bought a nice piece of Sockeye salmon at the store this week. I have to admit, though, that I'm not the best at preparing salmon in interesting ways. And, since it's January, it's just way too cold to stand outside and grill.

I've been testing recipes for THE DIVA STEALS A CHOCOLATE KISS, and I had quite a bit of sour cream left over. I'm not big on dill with sour cream, so I dared to Google the words sour cream and salmon. The very first recipe to pop up was on Inspired Taste. It sounded too easy and maybe even too good to be true. I tried it anyway.

This is the perfect we-just-got-home-and no-one-wants-to-cook recipe. Seriously, you could plop this on a bed of lettuce and have a meal. It takes seconds to prepare the sour cream topping while the oven preheats. And then it cooks in 15-20 minutes. Quick, easy, and almost no cleanup if you bake it on parchment paper.

Did I mention that it was delicious?

I do have one suggestion, though. In a moment of supreme laziness, I did not cut the salmon into four pieces like the recipe suggests. I loaded the sour cream topping on the whole piece and popped it in the oven for twenty minutes. It was perfect. Go for the shorter cooking time of 15 minutes if you have four small pieces. I suspect that cooking it as one large piece kept it from drying out. I was worried that the middle might be undercooked but it was just right.

I didn't have whole grain mustard, but my favorite horseradish mustard worked beautifully.

Sour Cream Baked Salmon

Four 6-ounce salmon filets (or one 6-7 inch-ish filet)
1/2 cup sour cream (whole fat)
1 1/2 teaspoons whole grain mustard (or horseradish mustard)
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 425. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Mix together the sour cream, mustard, and parmesan cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spread the sour cream mixture over the entire top of the salmon. Bake 15-20 minutes. (15 minutes for individual pieces, 20 minutes for one larger piece.)

  
I didn't cut it into pieces.

With sour cream topping before baking.

Almost looks like meringue!

Coming in June!

23 comments:

  1. Welcome Leslie. Happy to see you here with friends.

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  2. So glad to have Leslie here!

    This salmon recipe sounds perfect. We eat a lot of salmon at our house (okay, farm-raised--so shoot me), as well as other fish (we're on a first-name basis with our market's fish seller), so a quick, easy and tasty recipe is very welcome. I agree with you about leaving the piece intact rather than cutting it up before cooking--it stays moister that way.

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    1. We don't eat salmon as much as we should. I'm hoping this recipe might change that!

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  3. Welcome, Leslie...looking forward to "Assault and Pepper"!

    So glad no one is leaving, Krista! (Looking forward to "The Diva Steals a Chocolate Kiss"...great cover!)

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    1. We're all glad that no one is leaving, Patricia. We feel like we have a lovely group of authors.

      I'm so glad that you like the cover. I think it's beautiful! Of course, I have to give complete credit to the artist, Teresa Fasolino!

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  4. Thanks for the wonderful welcome -- I'm thrilled to be here! And Krista, I swear, I saw that picture and thought it was strawberry shortcake. Then I cleaned my glasses...

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  5. Welcome to Leslie! You'll be a great fit here. I am looking forward to your post tomorrow.

    Krista, this looks very interesting - it's also too cold to grill here this week. But we love salmon and the other ingredients. Another winner, I'm thinking.

    Hugs,

    MJ

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    1. I certainly thought it was a winner. And so easy!

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  6. It's on the menu for tonight---I just need to pick up the sour cream at the grocery store.

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    1. That's too funny! I hope you like it as much as we did!

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  7. That salmon is an extraordinary color! How enticing with its topping.

    Welcome, Leslie.

    I, too am delighted that no one is leaving. I don't know how you all do it with your writing and maintaining the blog(s).
    But PLEASE keep it up!

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    1. Sockeye salmon has that amazing color. It's really beautiful.

      We're trying to keep it up, Libby! Thanks for being so supportive of us!

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  8. First, welcome Leslie! So glad to have you on board. Cleo, thrilled you're sticking with us. :)

    Krista, love the cover for your next book. Delicious!! And this salmon looks like a nice twist on a usual dinner. Thanks!

    Daryl / Avery

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    1. Teresa always paints such beautiful covers for us. I love this cover!

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  9. Chiming in to welcome Leslie to the Kitchen! It's wonderful to have new blood in the New Year, and I'm looking forward to continuing to cook up new things with all of you (and our wonderful readers and blog followers). You guys are the best!

    Krista - This salmon recipe is right up my alley and Marc's, too. We both regularly eat smoked salmon and cream cheese on bagels and crackers. Combining that creamy, slightly tangy taste of the sour cream with the meaty, delicious salmon has my mouth watering. And I love the colors on the plate. Beautiful pictures! Thanks for sharing and thanks especially for all you do for the blog. You're amazing. Have a delicious week...

    ~ Cleo

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    1. Of course, it's not smoked but it does have that lovely creamy tang. I think you and Marc would like it! Thanks for your very kind words, Cleo. We glad you're sticking around!

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  10. Love this group of writers and this site of your recipes. Thanks! HHarra

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    1. Thank you, HHarra. We enjoy writing mysteries and bringing you new recipes!

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  11. I love the cover art Krista, can not wait to read it. Two great series! Keep them coming.

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  12. I love reading about the new books. Some really great authors and fantastic recipes. Thank you. slpetera@yahoo.com

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  13. Thanks for all the warm welcomes. I'm looking forward to sharing many happy meals with you all, on the page and on the blog!

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  14. Welcome Leslie! Happy that you're joining the crew here!
    Krista...can't wait to read this next installment of A Domestic Diva series. Congratulations!

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