Saturday, February 23, 2013

February 21, 2013 Grilled Salmon with Asparagus and Cous Cous

February 21, 2013 Grilled Salmon with Asparagus and Penna Pasta tossed with Pesto

We are trying to lighten up our meals so we can lose some weight before summer, so the reviews may get shorter and less complex.  I hope they do not become less interesting.
Yesterday I bought a 1 lb. salmon steak at Ta Lin and we still have some asparagus from our trip to Sprouts on Sunday.  suzette suggested that we serve the salmon over pasta.  I said I thought there was a jar of fresh pesto Suzette had made with the fresh basil from our garden last fall.  So we decided to make penna pasta with pesto. 
We boiled 1/2 pound of penna in a pot of water until soft and then Suzette spooned the 4 ounce jar of pesto onto it and tossed it.
Suzette fired up the propane grill and grilled the salmon while I de-stemmed 14 stalks of asparagus and put them in the steamer.  When Suzette turned the fish, we started the asparagus.  Then I went to the basement to fetch a bottle of Chenin Blanc from Vouvray, 2011 Lacheteau ($6.99 Trader Joe’s).  The bottle said it was semi-dry and it was correct.  I would guess that it was about 8 to 9% sugar by volume.  Chenin Blancs run from 0% sugar to over 20% sugar.  We visited the Loire Valley and went to a wine tasting in Vouvray last August and drank a lot of Vouvray.  I would say that we prefer chenin blanc still wine that is between 2½% to 4% sugar, which is usually called “sec”.  We tasted several sparkling Vouvrays that contained between 1 ½% and 2% sugar that were called “quarter sec” that were fabulous wines.  Much of the Loire’s chenin blanc’s sweetness is based upon the weather that nature provides in any one year.  In cool years the wine is usually less sweet and in warm years the % of sugar is higher.
Suzette cooked the salmon to rare and when we saw that the center of the filets were still uncooked and red, she put the salmon back on the grill for an additional minute to push it to medium rare, pink in the middle and white on the edges; perfect.
Dinner was simple and very pleasant with a good glass of French Vouvray.
Bon Appétit

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