It's All Goop

I like Gwyneth Paltrow.  She doesn't quite rise to the level of Ina Garten, but I do like Gwyneth.  She always seems as though she'd be a nice person, albeit, not really like the rest of us.  I mean, come on.  I do not curate my wardrobe, nor do I have ten trillion followers on my website.  But I do like Gwyneth even if I don't really understand her.

We do have things in common.  Gwyneth likes to cook and eat and she writes cookbooks.  I also like to cook and eat and I have this food blog.  There is it.  Gwyneth and I do have something in common.  We both like to write about what we cook.

Unfortunately, Gwyneth has a thing for ingredients like gluten free flour and brown rice syrup.  These are not items you will find in my kitchen.  I am not actually sure what xanthan gum is or what it does, but Gwyneth uses it with abandon.  Nonetheless, there is common cooking ground for the two of us.

This recipe, with a few alternations, is a good example of that common ground.  Of course, Gwyneth makes her own sriracha, so we'll just skip over that whole part for now.  Needless to say, I buy sriracha, preservatives and all.  But this is a really good recipe, with or without the homemade sriracha.  It's fresh and easy.  And, it's good enough to serve to guests, especially if you were trying to dazzle them with your familiarity of all things Gywneth.  (You could throw in a line like "I got this recipe from Gwynnie" -- and of course you call her Gwynnie because you're so close.)

A nice side to the salmon is Gwynnie's recipe for brown rice with nori.  Honestly, even with the brown rice, which I do not eat for the taste, but because it really is better for you than white, this is a winner of a side dish.

Recipe:  Salmon with Sriracha and Lime
(Adapted from It's All Good by Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Turshen)

Ingredients:

Juice and zest of 1/2 lime
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons tsp sriracha sauce*
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1 1/4 lbs pounds salmon fillet, skin removed
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro

Directions: 

Heat oven to 425°. In a bowl, whisk together juice, zest, syrup, sriracha and salt. Place salmon in a baking dish lined with parchment paper; pour lime-maple mixture over top. Roast salmon until cooked through and flaky, 15 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro; serve.

Recipe:  Brown Rice Stir-Fry with Nori and Black Sesame
(It's All Good by Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Turshen)

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups day old cooked brown rice
Coarse sea salt
2 sheets nori seaweed
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon toasted black sesame seeds
2 scallions, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet set over high heat.  Add the rice, along with a big pinch of salt, and cook, stirring until warmed through and just barely beginning to brown, 2 to 3 minutes.  Using scissors, shred the nori finely and add it along with the remaining ingredients.  Stir to combine and serve immediately.