Garlic butter salmon with spring fruits, flowers, and vegetables

Garlic butter salmon, roasted green apples, green beans, lemon/caper/honey chutney, basil, violet/vetch/speedwell

After gardening all day yesterday, I really wanted to add some spring to our next meal. This celebration of Persephone is as easy to make as it is beautiful.

Ingredients:

• 1.5lb salmon (we like Norwegian)
• 1lb green beans
• 1 green apple
• 1/4 lemon
• 1 T capers
• 1/2 T local wildflower honey
• 3 cloves roasted garlic
• 3 T unsalted butter
• 10-15 small basil leaves
• About 20 edible wildflowers (I used violet, vetch, and speedwell)

The How To:

1. If you didn’t join us for wing night and have leftover garlic butter, melt your butter in a sauce pan on VERY low heat with finely mined garlic cloves. When the garlic cloves are mushy, that’s when it’s finished.
2. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees and prep a baking sheet with a baking mat. Place the salmon skin-side down on the center of the mat with the green beans around it on the sides.
3. Cut your apple into 20 slices. I did this by using an apple slicer, then cutting each piece in half lengthwise. Add these on top of your green beans.
4. Using a cooking brush, liberally brush 2 T of your melted butter over the top of the salmon. Salt and pepper it. Place in the oven.
5. As the salmon is cooking, prep your chutney. Put the capers in a small bowl and mash with a fork until pasty. You don’t have to drain them, you want some of their juice in there, too.
6. Next, supreme (or segment) your 1/4 lemon by carefully cutting around the pith and only scooping the fruit into the bowl. Mash the lemon into the caper mash. Add the honey and mix. Add a little salt and white pepper. Let sit.
7. Allow the salmon to cook for about 12 minutes. It should be flaky and medium—I like to take it out when the internal temperature is 140 degrees.
8. Upon removing the salmon from the oven, brush with the remainder of the garlic butter.
9. When the salmon has rested at least five minutes, cut it into servings and plate.
10. To plate, top with the apples, chutney, basil, and wildflowers.
    

So, what’s it cost?

• 1.5lb salmon: $10.70
• 1lb green beans: $2.99
• 1 green apple: $.10
• 1/4 lemon: $.10
• 1 T capers: $10
• 1/2 T local wildflower honey: $.10
• 3 cloves roasted garlic: $.10
• 3 T unsalted butter: $.37
• 10-15 small basil leaves: from garden
• About 20 edible wildflowers: foraged on hike

Total cost is $14.56, or $4.85/person.