Mary’s Broiled Salmon With Marmalade

I have often thought of myself as being basically conservative. For instance, I believe that Christ was right when he said that the second great commandment was, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself….” He said it 2,000 years ago, but it’s still a good idea. As you can see, I like reading it in the King James translation, which is a bit over 400 years old. Old ideas, old words, old spellings.

I like comfortable old shoes, well-patched work pants and books written long enough ago to prove that they are worth remembering. I enjoy trout fishing and books about the sport. One of my favorites is The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle. The book is over 500 years old and was probably written by a woman, Dame Juliana Berners. It is the oldest known book about fishing published in English and still has some good tips for a trout fisherman. More evidence of my conservative bent.

I am also a conservative when it comes to barbers. Phyllis Jackelen cut my hair for over twenty years. We became friends, exchanged Christmas gifts and enjoyed our time together every month. After Phyllis died I had to find a replacement. It has been only ten months, but I think that Sue Johnson will be Phyllis’ permanent replacement. She does a good job with my thinning hair and likes to cook.

When I asked if she had any favorite recipes that she might consider sharing, she told me about one she got from a friend who lives in Woodbury, Minnesota. Mary Stromen gave it to her nearly ten years ago. A ten-year-old recipe is one that a conservative can use without feeling too liberal, and since Mary is the sister of Karen Pape, our neighbor of more than forty years, the recipe has an even more respectable pedigree.

Dame Juliana has some advice for salmon fishing if you want to catch your own fish, but you can buy some nice skinless filets quite reasonably and turn out a delicious and nutritious entrée in just a few minutes by following the recipe that Sue shared with me. Here is what you do.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup orange marmalade           
1 T Dijon mustard   
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper 
1/8 tsp. ground ginger  
4 (6 oz.) skinless salmon filets      

PROCEDURE:

For best results, remove the filets from the refrigerator fifteen or twenty minutes before cooking them. If you are in a hurry and don’t have time to let the filets come to room temperature, just add an extra minute to the cooking times and be sure to check that the fish is done.

Preheat the broiler and arrange the top rack in the oven about six inches below the broiler. Line a jelly roll pan with aluminum foil and coat it with cooking spray.

Stir the spices into the marmalade in a small bowl. Make sure that the spices are thoroughly mixed with the marmalade.

Place the filets in the pan and brush half of the marmalade mixture over the fish. Broil for about six minutes, turn the filets and brush them with the remaining marmalade mixture. Broil for another two minutes or until the fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.    

Serve with rice and a green vegetable or salad.