Pan Seared Seasoned Salmon with Don’s Noilly Prat Sauce

While we dive into My Wild Atlantic Kitchen once more for this Saturday night’s dinner date, there is one major substitution on my part, as well as a reimagined Noilly Prat sauce, so my apologies to author and chef Maura O’Connel Foley.

This week’s recipe is Scallops with Noilly Prat & Mushroom Sauce. But I substituted salmon for the scallops. My dinner partner and pretty girlfriend, Carolyn Flynn stuck with Maura’s recipe and cooked with scallops. This was a virtual/zoom date as we are wont to do on Saturday nights when we can’t be together.

I pan-seared the seasoned saalmon on the stove top, deciding not to finish it in the oven, instead opting to cook it hot and fast for a crisp pan sear and a warm pink middle. My favorite pan for this is my 13” cast iron skillet, and the fish was seared in Kerrygold butter.

I laid the fillet on a plate and dusted it lightly with onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, dried basil and lots of fresh ground black pepper, and let that rest while I prepared my sauce. I served this with garlic blistered French green beans.

I’ve made the Noilly Prat sauce several times before, but as much as I like the taste, I found it to be thin. I wanted something creamer and richer, but with the same overall flavor.

Thus I give you Don’s Noilly Prat Sauce.

In a sauce pan, melt 2 tablespoons Kerrygold butter. Add a minced shallot and cook over medium heat for a few minutes. Add two tablespoons of minced garlic and and took to bring up the flavor, but not too long. Add the mushrooms. I minced two large white mushrooms and thin sliced two more. Sautee these for a few minutes.

Add two ot thee tablespoons of heavy cream, stir in two or or three heaping tablespoons of cream cheese. Stir constantly will blended. Crack in some pepper to taste. Add a couple/few tablespoons of dry vermouth, and a a couple/few tablespoons of dry red wine. Mince up some fresh basil (5-8 leaves) and fold into the sauce. Put on low heat and pan sear the salmon on a medium-high heat.

Plate the salmon, top with the sauce, serve with a veggie of your choice.