Miso Salmon Steaks with Homemade Ginger Mayonnaise and Roe

Winter is coming, and if you're not doing it already, y'all need to start paying serious attention to your intake of fats and fat-soluble vitamins. And not in the way you think.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am going to tell you something that I hope makes you rejoice... I WANT YOU TO EAT MORE FAT.

As with everything in nutrition, quality is paramount, and when I say "fat", I don't mean deep fried junk or commercially produced treats loaded with hydrogenated vegetable oils and trans-fats. I mean oily wild fish, fatty cuts of pasture-raised meat, chook thighs, egg yolks, liver, fish roe, coconut, olives, raw grass-fed dairy (if tolerated), avocado, and plenty of activated nuts and seeds.

Fat is one of the most important macronutrients when it comes to your immunity, and many people feel the effects of a compromised immune system in the cooler months when colds and respiratory infections tend to take hold. Vitamin C and Zinc are both well-known to boost immunity, but did you know the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K also all play a vital role in maintaining immunological health? Not only do the fat-soluble vitamins serve as cofactors for many reactions in the body which a healthy immune system needs in order to function optimally, but the fat itself also serves to bolster the integrity of cell walls (which are largely made up of fat, the majority of which is saturated), thus protecting the cells from infection from viruses which can invade via weakened cell walls and cause illness.

I hope y'all are on board enough with recent scientific literature to understand that I am not fattening you up for winter by telling you to eat more of this particular macronutrient, and that ample good quality fat in the diet will NOT make you pile on the body fat. I also hope we are all wise and comfortable enough to understand that we - especially we women - NEED some body fat in order for functioning fertility, proper endocrine/hormonal activity, and to maintain optimal immunological health.

Anyway, enough pre-amble. Let's get to the recipe. This is one of my favourite, simple winter dishes that is absolutely loaded with vitamins, protein, living probiotics (if you include homemade whey in the mayonnaise), and health-promoting fatty acids. It's also absolutely delicious, and the ginger and miso paste make it a wonderfully warming dish to enjoy as the seasons begin to change. This dish will take approximately one hour from start to eat, but it isn't as fiddly as you might think. The portions below will feed two hungry people.

Let's get to it.

Miso Salmon Steaks with Homemade Ginger Mayonnaise and Roe

Ingredients:

2 salmon steaks

1 medium sweet potato

1 small floret of broccoli
1 small bunch asparagus
2-4 Tbs salmon or kingfish roe
2 Tbs raw butter (use coconut oil if dairy is an issue)

Miso marinade

1 Tbs unpasteurised miso paste (I used one made from fermented brown rice)

The juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp honey

1 tsp of freshly grated ginger

Ginger mayonnaise:

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 Tbs homemade liquid whey (optional)

1 pinch sea salt

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 x cup olive oil

(then add)

1/2 tsp of lemon rind

1/2 tsp of grated ginger

The juice of 1/2 a of lemon

Method:

1) You can make the mayonnaise up to three days in advance if you like, the addition of liquid whey will help preserve and ferment this condiment as is done traditionally. To make, place the egg, yolk, liquid whey, salt, and mustard in a food processor and start to blend. Add the olive oil in very slowly in a thin stream while continuing to blend the mixture. If you rush this step, the mixture will crack and the oil will not be incorporated. It could take up to five-ten minutes to add the oil slowly enough. Once this is done, stir through the lemon rind, ginger, and lemon juice.

2) Preheat the oven to 180C, combine the ingredients for the miso marinade, and then coat the salmon steaks in the marinade and allow to sit.

3) Cut the sweet potato into 1cm discs, coat in butter or coconut oil and season with salt and pepper, and cook in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

4) After 20 minutes, butter and season the broccoli and asparagus and add to the baking sweet potato for a further 10 minutes.

5) While the greens quickly roast, fry the salmon in either butter or coconut oil over medium-high heat on your stove top. I like my salmon rare, so only fry it for about 2-3 minutes each side.

6) Serve the salmon and veggies topped with the ginger mayonnaise and fresh roe and an additional wedge of lemon if desired.

7) Congratulate yourself on making such a well-rounded, delicious, and healthy meal for yourself.

Enjoy it, foxes. xx

Sattvic rice pudding

This rice pudding is the business.

It is sweet, well-spiced, creamy, beautifully satisfying, and full of superfoods and medicinal spices. In Ayurvedic understanding, this would be considered to be a very grounding recipe and perfect for the chill in the unpredictable weather we are experiencing in Sydney at the moment. It is also incredibly easy to digest. I'll explain why.

As you may or may not know, I am not a big eater of the old grains. 

I eat them, certainly, but I have a grain threshold. As do many people. 

If I eat too many grains I feel bloated, sluggish, and - believe it or not - a little edgy and depressed. The fact that over 80% of our neurotransmitters are created in the gut, and that our gut flora create some very powerful substances that do cross the blood-brain barrier (such as various opiates), it is no surprise that the food we eat and how well we digest it can influence our moods and mental health so greatly. A nutrient deficiency can also cause lethargy and sluggishness, and eating too many grains that are not properly prepared to minimise their phytate content can inhibit nutrient absorption significantly.

For those who don't know, when I refer to properly prepared grains, I am talking about sprouted, fermented, or soaked grains. The reason these traditional methods of grain preparation used by our ancestors are so important is that grains contain a high amount of phytates, which can cause inflammation and digestive upset in excess. They also interfere with nutrient absorption by binding to certain vitamins and minerals in the gut. Soaking the grains in warm water with some lemon juice for 12-24 hours will significantly reduce the phytate content, as will natural fermentation (such as when we create genuine sourdough), or sprouting the grain.

If you, like me, have a grain threshold, take it seriously. You will be amazed at the difference it will make to your digestion, your energy, and yes - even your thoughts and feelings.

This recipe contains basmati rice - a very digestible grain when prepared correctly.


Enough talk.

Ingredients:

¾ cup basmati rice, soaked for 8-12 hours 

1 can (2 cups) organic coconut cream

2 cups water

2 cardamom pods

4-6 cloves

1 star anise

1 cinnamon quill

1 vanilla bean, scraped

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 pinch Himalayan salt

¼ cup coconut sugar

¼ cup goji berries

Method:

1. Place all ingredients except for coconut sugar into a large saucepan and bring to a boil. 

2. Turn down to a low heat and cook until the rice is tender and has absorbed the majority of the liquid (about 20 minutes). 

3. In the last 5-10 minutes, add the coconut sugar and stir through.

4. Remove cardamom pods, cloves, star anise, and cinnamon quill just prior to serving.

5. Garnish with extra powdered cinnamon or nutmeg and serve warm.

xx