Ketolicious Broiled Miso Salmon with Sesame-Scented Cauliflower Rice and Asian Slaw

 

Marinated in a sweet and savory sauce, this salmon recipe is as tasty as it is elegant, and incredibly easy to make.  It really is a straightforward dish - just a few ingredients you whisk together, pour over the fish, then stick in the fridge for the fish to marinate for no more than an hour... otherwise you wind up pickling the poor thing. A word about miso... 

Miso is made primarily from soybeans and usually includes rice or barley. They are steamed, mixed with koji (a fermentation starter) and left to ferment for 6 months to 5 years. Miso provides protein and is rich in vitamins and minerals and used for many dishes in Japanese cuisine - from marinades to salad dressings to the base of soups.  Miso has a nutty, salty and savory taste -not unlike tahini, so when I use it in marinades, I mix it with something sweet as well as acidic to complement the salt... typically mirin ( a type of rice wine similar to sake, but with a lower alcohol content and higher sugar content. The sugar content is a complex carbohydrate that forms naturally during the fermentation process; no sugars are added), honey, or sugar is used, but since we are keto in my household, I'll mix a sweetener such as monkfruit, coconut sugar or brown Swerve into a splash of wine - usually a teaspoon of sweetener to two tablespoons of Chardonnay or Sake & whisk it in well until the sweetener is dissolved. It takes a few minutes but it is well worth the effort, especially if you are out of mirin (as I was). I think miso is so pretty: 

So... to the miso paste, I add a little fresh minced ginger, a little fresh minced garlic, a little lemon, low sodium soy sauce, toasted sesame oil and mild Japanese rice vinegar... as a garnish I add chives (because I was out of scallions) and toasted sesame seeds, then serve it with cauliflower rice which is scented with a bit of toasted sesame oil and a broccoli slaw which is just julienned broccoli stems, carrots, and cilantro, but you can make a slaw out of anything you like. I like the contrast of temperature and textures.



*Word to the wise: When cooking a miso-marinated dish, regardless if it’s fish or meat, you must remove the marinade before broiling or grilling because miso burns quickly. Don’t worry about not having enough flavor by removing it. The flavor of miso penetrates protein quite easily. Trust me when I say the meat will glaze beautifully anyway.

This recipe serves two. 

Ketolicious Broiled Miso Salmon, 

Sesame-Scented Cauliflower Rice and Broccoli Slaw 

INGREDIENTS

Marinade:

• 2 Tbsp white miso
• 1 Tbsp Japanese rice wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp mirin (or substitute as I did with 2 Tbsp chardonnay mixed well with 1 teaspoon of keto approved sweetener like monkfruit, brown Swerve, or coconut sugar until sweetener is completely dissolved into wine) 
• 1 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil (roasted)
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced
• 1/2 inch piece of ginger root, finely minced
• juice from half a lemon
• 16 oz skin-on salmon fillet (I like using one big piece to keep the fish moister, but you can cut it in half)

Garnish:

• 1 tsp toasted white and black sesame seeds (optional)
• 1 green onion/scallion or several snipped chives (optional)
  
  
  

INSTRUCTIONS

• Gather all the ingredients.

• Mix all the ingredients for the marinade in a large bowl.

• Place the salmon in a shallow tray or bowl just large enough to accommodate it, pour the marinade over it, coat it well over both sides, then place it skin side up. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and keep in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Do not marinate for longer than an hour, unless you want your salmon to be pickled.

• Line a baking sheet with foil for broiling. Remove excess marinade completely from the salmon and place it skin side down on aluminum foil.

• Preheat the broiler* with a rack placed about 6" away from the top heating element for 3 minutes. Place foil lined baking tray in the middle of the top rack. Broil on high for 10-12 minutes, depending on the thickness of the salmon. You do not need to turn it. *Broilers typically range from Medium/500ºF  to High/550ºF.

To Serve


I served the salmon on top of cauliflower rice that I cook with a bit of toasted sesame oil and a splash of coconut milk then add a little broccoli slaw as an accent, but any crunchy raw salad would do nicely. I like the contrast of temperature and textures. Top the salmon with sesame seeds and thinly sliced scallions or snipped chives. Serve. Voila! 

Keto Pumpkin Spice Waffles w/Freshly Whipped Cinnamon Cream, Mascarpone, Walnuts, and Warm Blueberry Compote...

 

Tis the season to be pumpkining... tra la la la la la la laaaaaaa....
Come the holidays, I enjoy the fragrance of warm sweet spices wafting through the apartment, and the only way to achieve it? Is by baking. El esposo and I continue to adhere to a diet known as the ketogenic diet. It is mostly for his health that we do. He has lost and maintained the loss of over 40 pounds. It's a high fat diet, with low to moderate protein and virtually no starches or sugar. You do eat carbohydrates in the form of low glycemic vegetables and some low glycemic fruits, but your total carbohydrate intake (excluding fiber) ideally should not exceed 20 grams.

Neither one of us is a dessert eater, but this time of year does beg for sweet indulgences, particularly on frosty late Autumn mornings, so.... I substitute nut flours for regular flours, alcohol sugars for regular sugar and have at it! There was a wonderful restaurant/bakery on the upper west side in New York City just across the street from my then boyfriend's, now husband's brownstone walkup called Sarabeth's Kitchen. It's still there, in fact, Sarabeth has expanded her little baking empire... anyway, she served the most delicious pumpkin waffles with golden raisins, sour cream and honey... this is my attempt to recreate them (sans the raisins and honey). 

This recipe only yields three full-sized Belgian waffles or six mini-ones, BUT it filled our bellies and our hearts beautifully. If you are feeding more than two, by all means increase the recipe accordingly. 

About toppings... There are "keto-approved" syrups you can use, but I like making berry compotes, they have fiber, vitamins, and are more flavor bang for your buck. I also serve the waffles with mascarpone and freshly whipped cream tinged with a bit of cinnamon instead of sugar, though you can sweeten it with powdered Swerve, if you prefer. You can sub in regular sugar and flour, of course, if you are not concerned about consuming starch or gluten, but I use almond flour, coconut flour, and sugar substitutes to keep the carb count lower.  I might whip the cream next time and fold it into the batter, or maybe whip the egg whites... just to see how much it lightens the texture. Cooking is all about experimentation. So dare to eat that peach!

Keto Pumpkin Spice Waffles w/Freshly Whipped Cinnamon Cream, Mascarpone, Walnuts, and Warm Blueberry Compote

Ingredients

For the waffles:

• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 4 tablespoons pumpkin puree NOT pumpkin pie filling
• 2 tablespoons nut or seed butter of your choice
• 2 tablespoons Swerve, or monkfruit sweetener OR coconut sugar
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream (add more as needed if you want a thinner batter)
• 2 tablespoons of peanut oil or melted butter
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup super-fine blanched almond flour
• 2 tablespoons coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of powdered ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon of cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• (or just use 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, if you don't have the first three spices)
• 1/2 tablespoon of ground cinnamon (or to taste)
• Avocado oil spray or coconut oil spray for coating wafflemaker
• Belgian Wafflemaker
  
  
  
  
  
  

For the blueberry compote:

• 1 cup of blueberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon coconut milk (or heavy cream)
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons of Swerve (or monkfruit sugar or coconut sugar)
• small heavy non-reactive sauce pan

Instructions


Instructions for waffles:

1. In a large bowl, beat the eggs then whisk in the pumpkin, nut or seed butter and sweetener. Pour in the cream and vanilla and mix until smooth and combined.
2. Add almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and cinnamon. Stir until batter is smooth and combined. The batter should be thick, somewhere between a cake and cookie batter. You can see it pictured here below. You can always thin it out by adding more cream.
3. Allow the batter to rest for 3-5 minutes. *Important*
4. Meanwhile, preheat waffle iron to high heat. Coat with avocado or coconut oil spray.
5. Make your blueberry compote (recipe below)
6. When waffle iron is hot... scoop 1/4 cup batter into the middle of the waffle iron (for mini waffles) or 2/3 cup of the batter for full Belgian waffles and spread out slightly to desired shape / size. ( I made 2 of each - mini and full). Close lid and cook until golden and cooked through, or according to your waffle maker's instructions. Once the light turns green or steam stops (about 4-5 minutes, flip and cook for another round (for extra crispy waffles) (another 4-5 minutes). Repeat with any remaining batter.
7. Allow to cool slightly then use a spatula or a blunt knife to remove and transfer to warm plates. (I heat our plates in the microwave).
8. Serve hot with whipped cream, blueberry compote, mascarpone, and/or other toppings as desired. I layered some of the topping between the waffles.

Instructions for compote:

1. Chuck all the ingredients in a pan over medium heat, give it a stir a couple of times, then, when it starts to thicken, lower heat to lowest setting until ready to serve atop waffles.

For the toppings:

• Mascarpone (or cream cheese), at room temperature
• Walnuts (or pumpkin seeds, or whatever you like)
• Freshly whipped heavy cream with cinnamon (to whip cream make sure the cream, the bowl, and the whisk are ice cold... you can stick them in the freezer for a couple of minutes - then it's all just wrist power... or if you have an immersion blender or an electric eggbeater you can use those, but I adore beating my cream into submission)