We’re back after a whirlwind weekend in Chicago! I haven’t said anything on the blog or social media before Friday night because it was a surprise for my very dear sister-in-law, Laura. She’s getting married this fall and this weekend was her wedding shower. With the bathroom remodel and our long distance away, we allowed most of the people involved (but especially the bride and groom) to assume we couldn’t make it… and then we showed up to pick Laura up from work on Friday.

We went out to dinner in the city at Carnavale, a really fun Brazilian/Latin restaurant with great cocktails (try the Marigold!) I had a giant steak with smoky black beans and rice. Smoke flavor was definitely employed in a lot of the menu, especially the desserts. The best part was when the kind staff brought out an immense cotton candy dessert in honor of Caitlin (my younger SIL)’s birthday. The handle of the cotton candy was stabilized by a tall glass of house-made caramel corn.

We’ve been home for about 20 minutes now. I’m posting this baby and going to BED.

Remember how I was talking about working so hard on getting ahead on the blog last week? It was because we were heading to Chicago. We made this amazing dinner after finding a killer deal on salmon at New Seasons last Sunday. We had gone to the store with something a little different in mind – tuna or tilapia, and maybe some different side vegetables. But when we saw this beautiful salmon on sale we made this instead.

In my opinion, if you have an opportunity to get great salmon on the west coast, you should take it as often as possible while still avoiding mercury poisoning.

Here’s what you need:

8 oz. salmon (recommended: fresh, wild-caught. Reference the Monterrey Bay Aquarium quick guide for help making a sustainable choice)
Olive oil, coconut or vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
Paprika
1 can of hominy, drained
½ cup beer

For the pineapple salsa:
1 ½ cups fresh pineapple, chopped into ½-inch pieces
1 ½ cups seeded, chopped heirloom tomato
1 small jalapeno pepper, stem, pith and seeds removed, minced
Juice and zest of ½ lime
¼ cup minced red onion
Salt

Prepare the salsa by stirring together the pineapple, tomato, jalapeno and onion. Add the zest and lime juice to the mix. Season liberally with salt. Allow the flavors to meld while you prepare the rest of the meal.

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a skillet on medium high. While it comes up to temperature, season the non-skinned size of the salmon with salt, pepper and paprika. Lay the salmon in the pan and cook for 3 minutes on each side. Remove from the heat (to a warmish plate) and cover with aluminum foil.

Next, add a little more oil to the pan and bring up to temperature. Add the drained hominy to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Add in the beer and simmer until the liquid is absorbed.

Gently cut the salmon in half. Place about ¾ cup of hominy on each plate and lay the salmon over top. Top with pineapple salsa.