Almond Crusted Salmon with Lemon Béchamel Sauce served with Mushroom Risotto

For all you single guys out there this dish was one that helped me land my wife Shawn.  When we were dating, I made this for her and her eyes got all lovey, and my hopes of romance that evening were for filled.  So it truly was a no brainer when I recently whipped it up again for her.  But now, she makes the risotto, and I make the salmon.  Cooking has become an activity we enjoy together and brings us closer.  Now let be clear about the risotto, below you will find my mushroom risotto recipe, Shawn has tinkered with it about a thousand times and I am sure she will be posting her version soon, if she already hasn’t.  Mine is still better (love you baby).

Enjoy…

2- 6oz portions of Salmon

4oz Slivered Almonds

1 Egg

3 tablespoons of Butter

1 Lemon

1 Cup Milk

1 tablespoon of Flour

1 tablespoon of Sugar

2 tablespoon of Olive Oil

1 cup Short Grain Rice

3 cups Vegetable Stock

2 cups sliced Baby Portabellas

½ cup diced Yellow Onion

½ cup diced Celery

¼ cup minced Garlic

1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

½ tablespoon of White Truffle Oil 

Salt

Pepper

In a 1 Quart Sauce Pan put the Vegetable Stock on simmer

In a large Sauté Pan heat Olive Oil.  Place in Rice and begin to warm.  The idea here is to get the outer shell of the rice to crack from the heat.  This will make them more open to accepting more liquids.  Add Onions, Garlic and Celery, season with Salt and Pepper and cook until Onions begin to become translucent.  Add a ladle of Vegetable Stock and stir until the liquid is almost gone.  Continue the process one ladle at a time.  When about 1 cup of Vegetable Stock is left add the Mushrooms and cook until they become tender.  Then continue with the Vegetable Stock until rice is cooked through and soft to the tooth.  Add Parmesan Cheese and top with White Truffle Oil.  The key to risotto is its viscosity, to runny and it is becomes soup, to dry and it becomes rice balls.  When you plate it should spread some on the plate but not all over the plate.

Beat Egg and add a little water to create an egg wash.  Dunk one side of the Salmon into Egg Wash and place Egg Wash side up on a Cookie Sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  Season the Salmon with Salt and Pepper.  Coat the top of the Salmon with the Slivered Almonds.  Place into oven at 375 for 20 mins.  Keep an eye on the Salmon and Almonds; they are very easy to burn.  If the Almonds begin turning dark brown pull the Salmon.  I prefer my Salmon to be medium to medium well, if you like yours more done turn down the temp by about 25 degrees and cook a little longer.  The trick here is cooking the Salmon to the doneness you prefer without burning Almonds.

In a Medium Sauté Pan melt butter over Medium High heat.  Add the Flour and whisk; whisk a lot, until it becomes smooth.  Add Milk, Sugar, the juice of the Lemon and then zest the Lemon into the mixture.  Continue to whisk until the sauce becomes silky and smooth.  Drizzle sauce over top of the Salmon and enjoy!