A Cheap Trip South

Sometimes losing your pre-conceptions can be a pleasant shock.  As a foodie, I have always loved both salmon and Mexican food, but not together.  In my imagination, salmon were the product of cold, stormy northern seas off places like Scotland and Canada, while Mexico was a place to stroll in a plaza or loll in the sun sipping margaritas or sangria. Putting the two together just did not compute.  But last night was, as they say, a dark and stormy night (or at least cold and windy) and my spirit longed for a trip to southern climes.  The foodie in me hastily served as my travel agent by riveting the unlike concepts of salmon and Mexico together and researching the fusion on the internet.  There were several recipes, but no one recipe worked for me. So I started scrounging through my pantry and came up with the recipe below.  It was an epiphany. Try it.  It may serve you too for one of those dark and stormy nights of the foodie soul.

SALMON VERACRUZ (Easy Healthy Version)

Ingredients (For up to 3 salmon portions)
2 TBS extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium-sized onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 14 oz. can diced organic no-salt tomatoes
1 can Rotel tomatoes (diced tomatoes with diced jalapeno peppers)
2 TBS chopped fresh thyme leaves or 2 tsp. dried thyme
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest or juice ½ lemon
½  cup sliced bottled green olives w/pimientos
2 TBS capers, drained
2 or 3 salmon steaks (7 to 8 ounces each), about 1 inch thick
 
1. Prepare the sauce: Place oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the tomatoes, thyme, lemon zest or juice, olives, capers,. Simmer briskly, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes to begin the blending process.  
2. Pre-heat the oven to 380 degrees. Place the salmon steaks into a baking dish just large enough to hold them with room for the sauce.  Spoon the sauce over the fish. Bake the fish for 25 minutes.  Enjoy.  This is good with a side serving of corn pudding.