Ginger Salmon and Fiery Kale

I've realized as a food blogger, that sometimes you run out of things to talk about. The chatter goes with the ebbs and flows of your life and centralizes itself around the food you are writing about. When you sit down to type a post, you typically turn to one of two topics: the food you're sharing or what's going on in your life. I've found myself gravitating towards the food recently, which certainly is the crux of the blog and should be the main focus. But how many times do you want me to tell you about how salmon is our new favorite fish and this recipe outdoes the last as far as cooking method? Granted, each new recipe we try unveils delightful surprises and we may find new preferences, but I feel like I say that in almost every post. Ginger salmon? Great way to bake the fish and a super standard yet satisfying glaze. Fiery kale? Fun new way to flavor kale - red pepper flakes are always a good option. So delish. A sweet salmon complimented by savory/spicy kale.

The reason I'm having a hard time talking life is because a) I'm not able to really talk about my job outside of work despite there being many fascinating things I do/see/learn everyday and b) I don't want to talk about the wedding because I don't want to reveal too much nor overload people with wedding talk. It's just rude. So what does that leave me to talk about? My cats. I can talk about my cats. But I'll spare you the crazy cat lady antics. I could tell you about piano lessons or yoga or running, but there isn't much new to report! I guess amusing life stories will have to wait until after the CWW team gets married and can start doing weekend adventures, so there will be new and exciting things to discuss! Anywho, check out this new recipe because it's divine and you should consider always baking salmon to achieve delectable flakiness.

Cooking Notes: We doubled the soy sauce to 1 tsp, instead of 1/2 tsp. We also only cut our salmon in half, since it was serving just the two of us. In the original recipe it can serve more, but we got a smaller piece of salmon to just feed us.

Ginger Salmon (adapted from Budget Bytes; serves 2)
1/2 lb. fresh salmon
1 inch fresh ginger
1 clove garlic
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
1/8 tsp toasted sesame oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Peel and grate about 1 inch of ginger, mince the clove of garlic and combine both in a bowl with the brown sugar, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Stir it up until the sugar dissolves and there's a thick, sticky mixture.

Cut the salmon in half. Prepare a baking sheet with foil. If you have salmon with the skin, you do not need to spray your foil; if there's no skin, go ahead and spray the foil to make life easier in the end. Slather the salmon with the brown sugar/ginger mixture, keeping as much on top as possible. Bake the salmon for 20-25 minutes or until the sugar mixture is golden brown. Serve immediately.

Recipe: Budget Bytes: Ginger Salmon

Cooking Notes for Fiery Kale: We halved this recipe in order to just have it for the two of us at dinner. We also eliminated salami, which the original recipe calls for.

Fiery Kale (adapted from The Kitchn; serves 2)
1 bunch kale

1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Rinse the kale well and shake it to mostly dry. Trim and discard the ends of the kale stems (or save for a stir fry later!). Leave the rest of the stem in, then slice the kale into strips about 1/2-inch thick, across the leaves. Heat oil in large, high-sided saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, saute for 1 minute. Turn the heat up a smidge to medium high, then add the kale and cook, stirring often until the leaves turn dark green and have shrunken, about 7 minutes. Season with S&P and serves immediately.

Recipe: The Kitchn: Fiery Kale