Let's Get this Summer Started!

What says summer any better than a nice piece of gorgeous Alaskan salmon topped with a cool summer salsa? To round out the flavors, I've made a baked brown rice mixture with sauteed baby portobello mushrooms. Add a crisp Sauvignon Blanc and I believe summer has arrived!

Salmon with Summer Salsa

3/4 lb sockeye salmon

Make salsa early in the day:

1 mango, peeled and diced
1 cup red seedless grapeps, halved
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
Juice of one  lime
A big bunch of cilantro, chopped

Mix all together, cover and refrigerate to let flavors mingle. Who knows what might happen when mangoes and grapes are left to their own devices?

No Fail Baked Brown Rice

I have been using this baked rice for quite some time and I really like how it turns out. You can use just plain brown rice but I'm changing it up tonight and using a really wonderful Brown Rice Medley that I get at Trader Joe's. ( I love TJ's) It's a blend of long grain brown rice, black barley, and Daikon radish seeds. Sound odd? Not to me!

1 1/2 cups medley
2 1/3 cups water, brought to a boil OR chicken stock which is really much better (but we're watching salt)
Pkg. of baby portobellos chopped big chunks
2 tsp butter
1/2 tsp salt (you can use more if you like but I try to limit salt)

Preheat over 375 and Pam spray glass 8 X 8 baking dish
Saute mushrooms in butter--spread over rice and add salt
Pour boiling water over all. Cover the dish tightly with a double layer of foil and bake 1 hour

Remove dish from oven and uncover, fluff with fork and cover dish with clean dish towel for five minutes. Uncover and let stand another 5 minutes.

Cook salmon while rice is resting:

Spray skillet with Pam--put fish in skin side down--cook until fish begins to whiten on the sides--sprinkle with pepper. Flip fish over-skin should lift off fairly easily--pepper this side and finish cooking. Top cooked fish with salsa.