Smoked Salmon Spaghetti

This is a dish I used to make a lot when I wanted to get a delicious meal in no time at all. Now I still make it once in a while, mostly for the kids, and mostly on those days when I just can’t hear any complaining about food – this is the ultimate favourite of everyone!

For five hungry people you need:

• 500g spaghetti


• 300g smoked salmon


• 300ml heavy cream or sour cream


• salt and pepper to taste


• freshly grated parmesan and fresh dill or parsley to serve

This is how to do it:

1. Bring water to the boil. Add a bit of salt and then the spaghetti. Cook for about 8 minutes, or until al dente.

2. In the meantime, prepare the sauce: Cut the salmon in smallish pieces and fry them shortly in a large pan. Add cream, salt, and pepper, and cook over a low heat until the spaghetti is done.

3. Drain the spaghetti, place it in a serving bowl, and pour the sauce on top of it. Stir, then sprinkle with grated cheese and chopped parsley or dill. Serve immediately!

Omelette Rolls with Sour Cream and Smoked Salmon or Fried Mushrooms

For me, omelette is an essential part of a brunch. Yet that’s one dish I’ve never fully mastered! It's hard to know how many eggs exactly one needs, it gets burned easily but still might be uncooked from inside, it's tricky to transfer it from the pan to a serving plate without breaking it.. Luckily these omelette rolls are easy to make - a bit like pancakes, but even easier! And they taste fantastic - either with smoked salmon or fried mushrooms. You can keep them warm in the oven, but they are even better when served right away. I’d advise at least two per person, but the amount obviously depends on how many other dishes you have prepared for your brunch!

For four omelette rolls, you’ll need

• 4 eggs


• ⅓ tsp salt


• a bit of oil or butter for frying


• 150g smoked salmon, in slices OR 200g mushrooms, thinly sliced and fried, sprinkled with salt


• 150g sour cream


• a couple of basil leaves


• freshly ground black pepper

Crack the eggs into a baking bowl, add the salt, and beat until the mixture is pale yellow. In a frying pan, place a bit of butter or oil, then pour just enough mixture to make a thin, pancake-like omelette. Fry from both sides, then transfer on a plate. When all of your omelettes are ready, it’s time to fill them: spread about 2 Tbsp sour cream on each omelette, place salmon or mushroom slices and 2-3 basil leaves on top of the cream, then grind some black pepper on top. Roll the omelette and transfer on a serving plate (oven-proof if you’re not serving them right away and want to keep them warm).

If you want some smoke flavour in the veggie version, you can sprinkle your fried mushrooms with a bit of liquid smoke - but don’t exaggerate!

Salmon Pastries

We’re on the road quite a lot, and when travelling, I prefer taking a packed lunch with us instead of always ending up eating fries, or Pommes as they call them here in Germany. These small salmon pastries my Mom used to bake when I was a kid are ideal for that purpose! I don’t feel good about eating fish, so I bake these quite rarely these days, make sure I buy organic stuff with a WWF label on it - and keep telling me it’s still a better option than buying our kids some Schnitzels that they’d insist on having with their Pommes anyway. Later I’ll post a vegetarian version with potato filling which I love just as much but that the kids unfortunately won’t eat...

Here’s what you need for some 20+ pastries:

Dough:

• 250g butter


• 250g quark


• 260g wheat flour


• 2 tsp baking powder


• ½-1 tsp salt (depending if you’re using unsalted or salted butter)

Filling:

• 200g smoked salmon


• 2 boiled eggs


• 1 raw egg


• 2 Tbsp chopped dill


• salt (and pepper, if you like) to taste

In a baking bowl, combine butter with flour, baking powder and salt, working them with your fingers until crumbly. Then add quark, mix thoroughly and put the dough into the fridge for the time you prepare the filling - which won’t take long, if you’ve boiled the eggs already. Just peel the boiled eggs, chop them together with salmon, then mix all the ingredients of the filling together. Note: if the salmon is very salty, you don’t necessarily need any extra salt.

Now, take your dough out of the fridge, roll it out and take out circles with a round mold - ideal diameter is 10 cm. On each, set about 2 teaspoons of filling in the middle (don’t worry, you’ll quickly learn how much is the ideal amount.) Wet the edges slightly with water (use your fingers or a small brush). Then fold the pastries to enclose the filling, and finally seal the edges with a fork (see the photo for an idea of how to do this.) Brush with egg or milk and bake in a preheated oven in 225 degrees for some 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Let them cool on a rack.

And then it’s time to pack everything else together and head for an adventure! Have a nice Sunday everyone! The picture below is from our latest adventure in the mountains.