In our culture, we describe a meal based on the type of meat, and so I might say, "I had chicken for dinner" or "I had pork for dinner" or "I had fish for dinner". But in Seattle, there is an entire category of meat that most of the country doesn't separately recognize: the category of salmon.

There's a good reason for this - huge amounts of salmon are caught in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. Visit the fish ladders at the Chittendon Locks in Ballard between July and September, and you can see entire schools of 2'+ salmon making their way upstream. One summer, the salmon harvest was so large the grocery stores were giving them away for free (limit 2, please).

Nearly all of my family now live in the Pacific Northwest, and I have had salmon many, many ways: poached with dill sauce, baked on a cedar plank, stuffed in puff pasty, made into sushi, or grilled and Rubbed with Love. But my favorite is the humble salmon burger.

I have frequently purchased salmon burgers from my local fishmonger. The problem with those burgers however is that they have so much fat that I find myself popping Tums within a few minutes of the completion of my meal...and personally, as a dessert, Tums leave much to be desired. Plus it seems somewhat ironic to consume my entire day's limit of grease eating an allegedly healthy food like fish.

So while my search for the perfect salmon burger doesn't quite rise to the level of a quest (for example my caramel sauce adventure), it has been an interest for quite a while. And I'm proud to say, I think I've found a winner.

This simple and flexible recipe for salmon burgers can be prepared at least two ways: as full-sized burgers, or as mini-burgers for an unusual but memorable appetizer. For a full sized burger, you can use your hands to shape the mixture, or get an inexpensive single-use kitchen tool: a burger press. For the uninitiated, you fill the press with ground meat and then rotate the handle to release a perfectly-shaped burger into your hand. Although this may seem a bit fancy for some (and anathema to people like me who decry single-use kitchen tools) it actually makes some sense: burgers - whether salmon or any other meat - are prepared quickly and without having to pack down the meat, and it's a lot easier to make them all the same size, ensuring even cooking.

To make mini-burgers, use the smallest cookie scoop (about 2 Tbs), and release a flat-sided scoop directly into a non-stick skillet. Saute on both sides, flattening with your spatula to form a mini-burger. By the time it's browned on one side, the fish will be perfectly cooked. I served mine on Triscuits with a bit of chive on each one for color. In the photo below, I used them to make a salmon salad.

Many people have asked me about my Mother's Day. In truth, I was brutally attacked...by a wrap.

My daughter and I were enjoying a lovely lunch in Newburyport. The sun was shining and we were investigating all the cute little stores. We stopped for lunch and I ordered a gyros wrap with onion rings (oh, how I love onion rings!).

Both were fabulously delicious, when suddenly the attack began. After taking a bite, I realized that my onion rings were sitting in a pool of wrap-dressing. I quickly moved them to higher ground, and then without warning, the flood ensued. A gap in the foil wrapper caused the dressing to go everywhere. My plate, the table, the chair, the floor, even the window next to our table...covered in oily dressing.

Then I looked down and saw that I was sitting in a puddle of it. It was also dripping down the front of my coat, shirt and hair. If I had to guess, I'd say more than one CUP of dressing had attached itself to my person and immediate surroundings.

My onion rings forgotten, I quickly sprang from my chair, trying to remove the offending grease from my shirt and jeans, but it was useless. I then took an entire roll of paper towels to the restroom, and proceeded to remove dressing from myself and my clothing, right down to the socks and underwear. This required a good deal of water, and I was fortunate that there was one of those extremely powerful hand dryers...and that it was a single-stall restroom. Because although I don't often feel embarrassed, I'm not sure I could have dried everything required under a hand dryer in a multi-stall facility.

The story has a happy ending. Thanks for the brilliant engineers at Excel (the hand dryer people) and an entire trash basket of paper towels, I emerged mostly clean and mostly dry, ready to finish my day with an extremely embarrassed teenage daughter.

But there are lessons to be learned from my nasty experience.

First, gyros (like Cheetos and baby back ribs) are a food best eaten in private. I'm normally pretty good about this, but it was Mother's Day so I guess that I thought the normal rules did not apply.

Second, when you are a host planning food, think not just about what your guests might like (pigs in a blanket = joy for anyone under 16), but how they will eat it. Small finger foods are the best at gatherings of more than 8 people; guests can grab a piece (and maybe a napkin on the side) and go. Save things eaten with a knife & fork for other occasions.

Years ago, I attended a benefit with drinks & appetizers. Due to poor planning on my part, I arrived quite hungry and deicded I would grab an appetizer or two. I knew they were there...I could SMELL them...but somehow never found one until I was offered a piece of beef wellington. While talking to a very elegant woman I accepted a piece of beef, however once I bit into it, realized my error: my lipstick was immediately and completely covered in flakes of puff pastry. I spent the entire conversation basically trying to chew the stuff off my own lips...as discretely as possible. I don't think I ever saw that woman again, but that may have been because she's been crossing the street to avoid me ever since.

Here are some tasty - and easy to eat - suggestions for your next gathering:
Sweet & Salty Nuts
Ham-wrapped asparagus spears (bonus - a no-carb recipe!)
Thin Italian breadsticks, such as Alessi
A couple of cheeses on a board or plate (one soft cheese and one hard) with a bowl of grapes on the side
Bacon cream cheese roll ups (extremely unhealthy, but simple to make and very, very good; picture at left)
Chocolate fondue with mini-marshmallows speared with tiny pretzels for dipping
Buffalo Chicken Dip​

​Any of these would leave your guests happy...and not wearing the food you are trying to serve them.

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I've often started my posts with stories of cooking disaster; an overcooked turkey, a failed salad made of shredded brussels sprouts, and the time I stuffed a roast chicken with a weed I believed to be sage. But with roast vegetables, I have no failures to share because it is almost impossible to do it incorrectly.

The basic recipe is simple: line a cookie sheet with foil, place evenly cut, clean dry fresh vegetables on the sheet and toss lightly with olive oil and salt. Making sure they are no more than one layer deep, bake at 450 degrees for 12 - 20 minutes, until the vegetables are crisp-tender (i.e. you can pierce them with a fork).

My son (21) attends the Riverview School in Sandwich, MA and in his dorm, they cook dinner together most nights. He recently send me a picture of the roast vegetables he prepared for his dorm. If a bunch of young 20-something men can cook roast vegetables - and enjoy eating them - you can be pretty sure you can cook and enjoy them too.

A word about salt. Salt has a bad name, and part of that is well-deserved. If you look at the back of a can of soup, frozen dinner or many other prepared foods, the amount of salt per serving is shocking; sometimes as much as your entire recommended daily intake. However, when you cook food that is REAL (i.e. not manufactured), adding a bit of salt is often a crucial step for great flavor. So when you make this recipe, add more than a pinch; unless you're on a salt-restricted diet, it's not going to hurt you.

Here is a partial list of vegetables that taste great roasted:

• Asparagus (snap off woody base of stem, usually about 1", and roast whole)
• Beets (boil until the peel slips off and cut to 3/4" cubes)
• Broccoli (break into equal sized florets, about 1")
• Brussels sprouts (trim and halve, also see my recipe for brussels sprouts roasted with bacon)
• Butternut squash (peel and cut into 3/4" cubes)
• Carrots (cut into 1" pieces, peel if desired) 
• Cauliflower (break into equal sized florets, about 1")
• Garlic (peel and trim end but leave bulbs whole)
• Onion (peel and cut into 3/4" pieces)
• Parsnip (peel and cut into 3/4" pieces)
• Potatoes (especially the waxier types such as red, blue or yukon gold; cut into 3/4" cubes)
• Sweet Potatoes (peel and cut into 3/4" - 1" cubes; they cook more quickly than regular potatoes, so cut the sweet potatoes larger if roasting together)

The next step is the rub, a combinations of sugar, salt and spice. You can buy it or make your own. For purchased rub, I like the salmon version of "Rub With Love" for both salmon and pork. Making your own rub is simple and inexpensive, and it keeps for up to a year. The evening before you are going to cook your pork, generously coat the pork on all sides with the rub and refrigerate the pork (uncovered if possible) overnight. 

First thing in the morning, get the pork out of the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature on your counter (this is perfectly safe unless you have a counter-surfing dog in your home). After an hour, preheat your oven to 275 degrees and put the pork in, fattier side up. Depending on the size, it will take several hours to cook - allow a solid 6 hours. This is a very forgiving meat; it needs to reach 200 degrees but if you cook it a bit longer, it will still taste great. Use a meat thermometer to confirm that the meat has reached 200 degrees.

A note about slow cookers (crockpots). There are many good crockpot recipes for pulled pork, and if your oven is otherwise occupied, a crockpot will do the job. The problem with a crockpot is that it's a moist cooking method, and your pork won't develop a crispy exterior if prepared this way. So crockpots are a good backup plan, but an oven is the preferred choice. A grill is a great choice (bonus - it frees up your oven and doesn't heat up the house), but only if you can truly control the heat.

Once the pork reaches 200 degrees, take it out of the oven and let it cool for 30 minutes or so. This is not necessary for the recipe, but will make it much less likely that you will burn yourself when you pull it. When the pork is done, it should smell fabulous and be crispy on the outside; the outside pieces are called the "bark".