This salmon salad is the creation of blogger Vicky at Stasty.com. Vicky is hard core: She makes her own butter, and the by-product is buttermilk.

“So I made some scrumptious buttermilk dressing, otherwise known as ranch dressing.” said Vicky. “To me, store bought ranch dressing is usually too sweet and gloopy, and nothing like the real thing. However, homemade ranch dressing is so divine; you can almost eat it on its own.

“Fresh buttermilk does make a difference and makes a really light and creamy ranch dressing. The white wine vinegar gives it a bit of bite and the dill makes it taste fresh and tangy.

“There are so many ways to use ranch dressing: on fresh green salads, on baked potatoes or as a dip. It’s a pretty versatile dressing, so I usually make a double batch to keep in my fridge, ready for all eventualities!”

Here, Vicky pairs ranch dressing with simple but colorful mixed greens and hot smoked salmon (“hot” refers to the smoking process, not the temperature of the fish—types of hot smoked salmon). You can use grilled salmon, poached salmon, and certainly, any leftover salmon. If your fishmonger sells salmon scraps, by all means save the money and grill them for the salad. Serve warm or chilled.

The key here is to contrast the rosy color of the salmon against the greens and white dressing. You can also use Arctic char, shrimp or lobster—or a combination.

And you can add more color with cherry or grape tomatoes. We had leftover boiled Yukon Gold potatoes and added them, sliced, as well.

Ingredients

 
For The Salad

Ranch dressing lovers will be very happy with this recipe. Photo courtesy Stasty.com.

1. MIX the buttermilk with the mayonnaise and white wine vinegar in a medium sized bowl or pitcher. Use a small hand whisk to smooth out any lumps.

2. ADD the crushed garlic, chopped dill and season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix well with the whisk and store in an airtight jar in the fridge. I find if you leave the dressing in the fridge for a few hours before serving, the flavours really develop.

3. ASSEMBLE the salad: Plate the greens and scatter the salmon or other fish on top. Drizzle dressing on top, and provide extra dressing on the side for those who want more. Garnish and serve.
 
HOW TO MAKE BUTTERMILK

If you’re not familiar with buttermilk, it’s a delicious beverage, like drinkable yogurt. In earlier times, when butter was churned at home, there was always plenty of buttermilk to drink and cook with. It adds richness to recipes from cake to fried chicken.

If you don’t have it on hand or don’t want to buy a quart, make what you need by adding white vinegar to regular milk:

1. ADD a tablespoon of distilled white vinegar (not white wine vinegar) to a one-cup measure.

2. FILL to the rim with milk. Let stand five minutes.

The take-out restaurant concept, which originated in Tokyo, has just opened in New York City. The gluten-free, rice flour crepes are packed with fresh ingredients and rolled into a cone shape.

The varieties, for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert, are all so exciting that we want to have every one.

Read the full review.

If you’re in New York City, head to 55 Spring Street in Soho. Here’s the company website.

Be sure to have yuzulade—yuzu lemonade. (The recipe is in the review.)

Then, hope that an Eight Turn Crepe opens near you.

Your local fishmonger should also be able to help you out with house-ground salmon burgers.

In addition to providing a delicious, meat free, heart-healthy alternative to beef, a salmon bacon burger saves on calories (MacKnights are 160 calories per patty) and cholesterol. The fat content of the salmon burgers is derived from heart healthy, monounsaturated fat.

Salmon burgers also outshine beef when it comes to protein (22 grams) and healthy omega 3s, with 3,300 mg per 3.5-ounce serving.

Cook up a delicious and healthier salmon burger. Photo courtesy MacKnight Food Group.

MacKnight’s Atlantic Salmon Burgers are one of the company’s most popular products, sourced from premium, farm-raised Atlantic salmon. The salmon bacon is produced from salmon sourced from the cold clean waters off Norway and Scotland. For more information about the company, visit MacKnight.com.

An alternative to ground salmon, but pricier:
salmon filet “burgers.” This one goes
gourmet on a brioche bun with hollandaise
sauce. Photo courtesy MacKnight Food
Group.

 
BURGER COOKING TIPS

We’ve been brewing and icing quite a few herbal teas these days, including a sprightly assortment from Pukka, a U.K. brand that is expanding in the U.S. It hits what we call the food trifecta: fair trade and sustainable, certified organic and certified kosher (OU).

To show yow much fun you can have with herbal tea, here’s a sampling of the blends (which are delicious iced or hot):

 
The company pays close attention to the quality of the plants they blend, finding the most potent, vibrant and flavorful herbs. Best sellers include Three Mint, Peppermint and Licorice, and Lemongrass and Ginger. See all of the blends at PukkaHerbs.com.

If you use ice in your iced tea, make ice cubes from the same tea as well: The flavors won’t get diluted.

We learned from Japanese and Asian-influenced restaurants that you can have lush, creamy tofu-based desserts and not even notice there’s no cream. Substituting tofu for heavy cream helps to save calories and avoid cholesterol. It produces recipes that support kosher, lactose-free and vegan diets. It’s also less expensive than cream, and is available in organic and conventional varieties.

Erin Dow of Guiding Stars shared how to make a heavy cream substitute from soft (silken) tofu.

“Abstaining from heavy cream, regardless of the reason, can pose a serious challenge in the kitchen,” Erin notes. “Its thickening power, its silky rich mouth feel, and the flavor-balancing power of its fat content, are tough to replicate with plant-based alternatives. But for certain applications, a substitute made with silken tofu can help. The recipe is simple.”

RECIPE: SOFT/SILKEN TOFU “HEAVY CREAM”

 
Soft/silken tofu heavy cream is a great substitute for pastry creams and other desserts, quiches and chocolate truffles and for thinning out frostings and dips. Use it to add body to sauces, gravies and smoothies. Extra firm or firm tofu is used for scrambles, kabobs, stirfries and other mains.

And pudding—chocolate, vanilla, butterscotch, etc.: Tofu substitutes easily for cream. The following recipe is dairy free and cholesterol free. It’s a companion to the tofu chocolate mousse recipe we published last year for National Chocolate Mousse Day.

It was created by Debi Mazar & Gabriele Corcos, hosts of Cooking Channel’s show “Extra Virgin.” Budino is the Italian word for pudding.

RECIPE: TOFU CHOCOLATE BUDINO

Ingredients For 6 Servings

No cholesterol, no lactose. Photo courtesy Cooking Channel.

Preparation

1. COMBINE sugar, water, and cocoa water in a medium sized saucepan. Bring to a boil, and stir until sugar is dissolved. Simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off heat and cool slightly.

2. MELT chocolate in a glass bowl set over a saucepan of lightly simmering water.

3. PLACE all ingredients in a blender and purée until completely smooth. Divide the chocolate mixture among ramekins and place in the refrigerator for 2 hours or overnight.
 
ABOUT TOFU

Tofu was first created from soybeans more than 2,000 years ago in China. While lots of tofu and soy sauce are consumed, approximately 85% of the world’s soybean crop is processed into soybean meal and vegetable oil.

In Japan, edamame (immature soybeans), miso (soybean paste), natto (fermented soybeans) and kinako (roasted soybean flour) are popular foods. Soy milk, tempeh and textured vegetable protein are increasing in popularity in the U.S.

If you’re ingredient-conscious, look for organic tofu, made from sustainably grown, non-GMO soybeans. Commonly used tofu processing aids such as defoamers, bleaches and preservatives are not used in organic tofu.