Bill Bumgarner

The random path that my life follows has led to the first Easter in my life where I'm alone. My immediate family is visiting the rest of the family on the East Coast. As much as I miss them, I'm thoroughly enjoying the time alone.

Yesterday, I visited the local farmer's market. Beyond an excellent assortment of fresh fruits and veggies, the market also has a wonderful fresh fish stand that sells only fish caught in the wild. I picked up some smoked salmon and a good sized filet of fresh salmon. I was intended on grilling the salmon but, as it would only be my taste buds at risk, I decided to try something different. It was a success!

skillet salmon

1. Take a good sized cast-iron pan, an inch and a half deep or so.

2. Heat the pan on high and add butter, fresh basil and fresh thyme. Simmer these together just long enough that the butter is melted nad the basil/thyme is starting to wilt a bit.

3. Add wine and orange juice such that the pan is about 1/2 full -- about 3/4" deep.

4. Put the salmon filet skin side down in the middle of the pan

5. Cover with the top (preferably glass) of a pot that is slightly smaller than the skillet. The sides of the top should all be submerged in the wine/juice.

6. Let simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, deepending on the thickness and size of the filet. The salmon should be just starting to turn opaque all the way through. This will be messy as the wine/juice should be boiling fairly vigourously. Since the sides of the pot top are submerged, it'll build up pressure under the top that will vent out the sides, spraying wine/juice out of the pan a bit. I covered the entire thing with a fry screen such that the drops were caught and dripped back into the pan.

The end result was an incredibly delicate filet of salmon. It was hard to eat with a fork because it fell apart so easily. The salmon was infused with the flavor of the wine/juice/herbs, but not so much as to override the flavor of the salmon itself.

Very, very tasty. I think I will be inflicting this recipe upon others in the near future.