Salmon Burgers

Okay, so we really ate these the way you would a crab cake, but they are really meant to be a burger. You know, with a bun, some mayo, lettuce, tomato... and they would have been even more delicious that way.  But I didn't have the appropriate groceries in stock.

I did have a bag of organic baby yukon gold potatoes, and some broccoli, and so that's what we ate.  Pretty simple.  But I think I'll make these again sometime with some slider buns, some crispy romaine lettuce, some olive oil mayo and tomato slices.  YUM.

Salmon Burgers

1 lb skinned salmon filet, diced
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp dried tarragon
1/4 tsp celery seed
1/4 tsp fresh cracked pepper
1 tsp honey dijon mustard
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (I used panko, but I think any will do)

Mix all together, and form into 4 small patties.  Saute in some warmed olive oil on med-high heat until browned, flip and brown the other side.  Serve immediately.

Crostini

We grilled some chicken on the grill one night, so I decided to try out some different flavors on top of  crostini.  Crostini is "little toasts" in Italian.  I bought a loaf of fresh French bread, goat cheese, avacado, and fresh salsa from The Fresh Market.  I also had some fresh blueberries from a local (NC) farm.

I brushed olive oil all around the french bread slices and delivered them to my husband, who grilled them along with the chicken.

The crostini with goat cheese and blueberries tasted like it had blueberry cream cheese, which was yummy, but not what I had expected.

What I really fell in love with was the one with goat cheese, avacado, salsa, and fresh cracked pepper.  I couldn't get enough.  It was so refreshing on a warm spring day.  My 7 year old even loved it!  My 4 year old wasn't quite as adventurous, who stuck with crostini with goat cheese, and blueberries on the side.

What do you love on crostini?

Backyard Berm, a Big Update!

We worked very hard in early spring on the back berm.  I posted a couple of years ago about how I had built it back up and added mulch.  Well, then I never did anything else.

This year we built a stacked brick wall.  It looks so much nicer, and really creates a division between the overgrown wetlands and us.  My husband cleaned up a lot of bamboo, vines, and other overgrowth as we went.

We did the following steps to ensure a lasting wall:

• We made sure that the ground was level with every brick laid
• We used small metal rods to add stability, by driving them down the holes every so many feet.
• We used dirt and mulch to stabilize some more, behind the wall.
• We put landscape fabric down, below the mulch.

 We did have to do something special around the drain pipe.  This is where rain water goes out to the wetland behind us.  We used a steel bar to hold the bricks straight across.  By the way, all the wild birds here are 'wild' about the brick wall!

It's definitely added some curb appeal to the back yard, and I love it!  Peter Cottontail also loves it!  He comes out every day to enjoy the view (and he likes to eat the weeds in our yard, too).

 

The wall was a lot of work, but a labor of love.  I love working in the yard, so this was a great project, and will be rewarding for a very long time.  I'll have to share what plants are currently on the berm in a future post, as well as some thoughts for what I'd like to add.  Any suggestions?