Twenty Dollar Salmon

Do you want to know what Whole Foods $20 per pound salmon tastes like? Well, it tastes like $20 of salmon in the same way that a $4 frozen salmon steak from Caputos tastes just like a $4 salmon steak. I guess you get what you pay for, and if you're paying for line caught, natural, no additives or coloring salmon then be prepared to pay top dollar for it.

We cooked our salmon simply at The Mansfield tonight. Lightly seasoned, fresh chopped dill on top and then grilled. Great flavors....and no fishy smells in the house. The coloring of the fish was amazing. If salmon is naturally this pink, why do we need to pump them full of coloring? Oh yeah, it's because they farm them, feed them corn, and make them swim in such constricted environments that they get to pass disease back and forth.

As asparagus is in season for the next few months we also had some fresh Michigan asparagus ($2 per pound). Again, simply seasoned, drizzled with olive oil and grilled.

Total cost: $22 for 2 people.

With asparagus being in season I'm looking forward to trying one of Nigel Slater's recipes. He combines pilaf rice with asparagus, broad beans and mint. He seasons this with cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, thyme and parley. As soon as I cook this treat up I'll post the recipe on the blog.