By Kristine Hansen | Photography by Holly Leitner
When you have guests over, enjoying the company of friends and family is the easy part. Deciding what to serve? That’s when hours of scrolling through recipe inspiration often has us stumped (and stressed).
Chefs are the best people to pose this question to, as their life’s work involves developing recipes and executing plating that inspires guests to whip out their smartphones to capture the beauty.
So, we tapped the brilliant, flavor-driven mind of Simon Cumming of Sopra Bistro in Lake Geneva to get his favorite, wow- factor entree recipe you can easily whip up at home.
“Everybody loves salmon,” he says, of the entree he chose. “It‘s just one of those crowd- pleasing dishes.”
Salmon with Crème Fraiche Fingerling Potatoes
YIELD: SERVES 4
INGREDIENTS
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 pounds fingerling potatoes, quartered 4 8-ounce salmon filets
- 1 cup crème fraiche
- 1 tablespoon shallots, minced
- 1 tablespoon capers, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon dill, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh-squeezed lemon juice
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat potatoes in oil, salt and pepper. Place in baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
While potatoes are cooking, season salmon filets with salt and pepper. In a separate bowl mix crème fraiche, shallots, capers, dill and lemon juice.
Preheat cast-iron skillet. Take potatoes out and set aside. Add oil to skillet and place salmon skin-side down. Reduce heat to medium and sear for 4 minutes. Flip salmon and place in preheated oven for 7 minutes.
Toss potatoes in crème fraiche mixture. Place salmon filets on top of potatoes and serve, or add your favorite green vegetable. Cumming opted for broccolini and asparagus.