Seared Salmon with Rosé Cream Sauce

Do you want to knock someone's socks off with dinner? Then this is your meal. It tastes absolument divine and comes together fairly quickly. I like to pair this with broccolini for color, but any vegetable will work. So, what are you waiting for?

Note: there is not beaucoup de sauce. It is meant to accompany the salmon, not drown it. I can still hear my chef from culinary school in Paris yelling in his French accent about not over-saucing the fish..."Ze poisson iz the star. NOT ze sauce." Although, when I find myself licking every last morsel of this sauce from my plate, I'm not sure if that is the case in this situation.

Feeds 2

12 oz Alaskan King Salmon

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

1 large garlic clove, minced

1/2 large shallot, minced

pinch of red pepper flakes

1/3 cup rosé wine

1/3 cup cream

Juice of 1 lemon

2 T butter, cold

1 T parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the salmon in half for 2 six ounce filets. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a large stainless steel skillet over medium high heat (closer to high than medium). Once the oil shimmers, place salmon flesh side down in the pan and do not move it. Sear for 4 minutes, flip and sear another 4 minutes. Turn off heat, remove fish from pan and place on a oven sheet tray lined with foil. Place tray in the oven for another 2-4 minutes until the salmon is cooked to your liking. (Note: this salmon was quite thick. You might need to adjust the time if your salmon is thin).

While the salmon is in the oven, turn heat back on to low under the pan and throw in the garlic, shallot and pepper flakes. Sauté about 30 seconds and then pour in the rosé. Turn the heat up to medium to deglaze the pan, using a whisk to mix everything together. Let this reduce a minute or two until the wine is almost gone. Add the cream, stir, and let bubble for a minute, then add the lemon juice and some salt and pepper. Continue stirring as this cooks down another minute. Then, turn down the heat a bit and slowly whisk in the butter one tablespoon at a time. The sauce will reduce and thicken as you do this. Taste. Adjust seasoning if needed and add parsley. Plate your salmon, spooning the sauce on top. Voilà! Enjoy.