my favorite recipe from my cookbook, Mostly French

And...I'm going on tour! (Plus a bonus recipe for paid subscribers that ISN'T in the book!)

Y’all….My book, Mostly French is coming out in exactly ONE WEEK. And I am a bit overwhelmed by the excitement.

BEFORE I begin waxing poetic about writing a book, shooting it with the incredible Emma Lee, and stying it with Kitty Coales and Kendall Lane…Let me tell you THREE VERY IMPORTANT THINGS.

1. I am giving away EIGHT SPOTS to the Courageous Cooking School (this is prize package that is worth a hecka lotta money). You just need to Pre-Order the book, or do some other non-purchase related things to enter. Click here to do so.

2. Pre-order the book. Please please please. This is crucial. I promise it’s beautiful, and you will love it. I swear.

3. Come see me on tour.

When I set out to write a cookbook, with recipes, the biggest question everyone asked was ‘Why is a famously recipe-free cooking instructor writing a classic cookbook?’

The answer is quite simple.

I freaking LOVE cookbooks. With every single fiber of my being.

(Well that…and…cooking without recipes doesn’t mean you should throw recipes out the window.)

When it comes to recipes, I am a fan. My first favorite recipes ever came from Bon Appetit and cookbooks. In fact, weirdly, one of my favorite cookbooks is Raw Food, Real World by none other than Sarma Melngailis of Bad Vegan Netflix fame. I learned to cook with cookbooks. I also angsted over the beauty of recipes time and time again.

Between La Peetch and my own collection I have over 350 cookbooks. I use them sporadically, and much like I would use encyclopedias. But I do find them useful nearly twice a week. And that, my friends, is why I love them so much. They are inspirations, they are tomes of work that show dedication to craft, they matter.

And I believe, wholeheartedly, in the power of cookbooks.

I just think that isn’t the only way we should cook. But that also doesn’t negate their importance.

(In fact, my big thesis is that the American obsession with recipes is actually what caused the industrial food revolution to take hold in a way. But THAT is a story for another day…)

Cooking for me, is about sharing something with another. It’s about sharing love, a perspective, a thing that is in it’s own right very much a sand mandala. Something ethereal, and only tangible in the temporal realm for a few moments before it’s consumption.

It’s about love, always. And often…flaky salt, too. (Kendall’s memoir should be called With Love and Flaky Salt btw)

Mostly French is a love letter. To a country that isn’t mine, but is now my home and slowly it is becoming a part of me and I a part of it. And perhaps someday, I will be French in full. But for now, I am mostly French, of course.

And it was a collaboration. Conceived by me, sure. But it took an entire village to get her made. I did the writing, I came up with the flavor combos. And Kendall held my AuDHD feet to the ‘get her recipized’ fire, with help from some pastry folks including Katie Rosenhouse and Alex Roman to get those perfected. It was then tested by incredible instructors from RecipeKick including Olivia Clulow, Zonya Dawson, and Danie Armstrong. Then Emma Lee and her incredible assistant Indy came and shot the book over 3 or 4 trips from the UK. It’s chock a block full of that gorgeous Provençal natural light. And Kendall and Kitty Coales styled it, with aplomb.

And then…we had a book. (After many edits and rewrites).

I think the most me of my recipes in this book is the Sweet Chile Glazed Salmon with Strawberry Sauce Vierge. This recipe is kind of a hat tip to the Courageous Cooking School, because one of my chefs was convinced strawberries and salmon did not go together. And Kendall and I were very convinced otherwise. For months, my family and friends would send me salmon and strawberry recipes they were loving. And this is an homage to that.


Chile Glazed Salmon with Strawberry Sauce Vierge

FOR THE SALMON

1 salmon fillet, with skin, 2 to 3 pounds
Fine sea salt
8 ounces hulled strawberries (about 2 cups chopped)
1 teaspoon chile flakes, preferably chipotle, or Urfa biber
1 lime
1 small shallot, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

FOR THE GARNISH

8 ounces cherry tomatoes, cut into halves
4 ounces strawberries, hulled and chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro or basil, alone or in combination
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Approach:

1. MAKE THE SALMON: Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place the salmon on a half-sheet pan and season both sides with the salt. Allow it to come to room temperature while you prepare the glaze.

2. Combine the strawberries and chile flakes in a blender. Grate in lime zest, cut the lime in half, and add about 1 tablespoon of the juice. Add the shallot, coriander, and a hearty pinch of salt, and process until smooth. Set aside.

3. Move the salmon to one side of the half-sheet pan. Pour about half of the sauce, in a strip the same length as the salmon, onto the center of the pan. Place the salmon on top. Smother the remaining glaze over the top of the salmon. Bake for 5 minutes to set the glaze.

4. Reduce the temperature to 425ºF. Continue baking until the salmon is rare (the flesh looks rosy when prodded in the center with the tip of a sharp knife), about 10 minutes more. For medium-rare (the flesh is pink with a rosy center), bake for 15 minutes. For fully cooked salmon (the flesh is pink and opaque), allow 20 minutes.

5. MAKE THE GARNISH: Mix the tomatoes, strawberries, and herbs in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper.

6. You can cut the salmon into portions and serve on plates, but honestly, we eat it right off the sheet pan, with the garnish on the side.



GO COOK. Tag me on instagram (@makennaheld). Come see me on tour. And for the love of all things holy, go PRE-ORDER THE BOOK AND ENTER THE GIVEAWAY TO COME VISIT ME.

Also, comment below, and tell me where you’re going to get your book signed on tour!


Now…for a recipe to test that isn’t in the book. As a bonus to paid subscribers. <3 Would love to hear your thoughts, as it’s not been tested before!

Charred Citrus and Roasted Beetroot