This past Sunday evening, Brian and I thought we’d try out our coordinated cooking skills and made dinner together at the Extended Stay. I had some salmon filets and spaghetti on hand, so we decided to make a spicy tomato-based salmon spaghetti. Realizing that we could also do with a side dish, we skimmed through a series of websites for inspiration and finally settled on stuffed portobello mushrooms. We cleaned out the ribs of the mushrooms and marinated them for about a half hour with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and focaccia seasoning. Then, while Brian was in charge of cooking them for about 3 minutes per side, I made a simple caprese salad filling.
For the pasta, we first sautéed red onions and red peppers until soft. Then, we added the salmon filets, a can of chopped tomatoes, garlic, red pepper flakes, and a bit more focaccia seasoning to the pan. As the sauce cooked, we broke the salmon filets into the sauce, maintaining bite-sized pieces. After the mixture thickened, we added the freshly cooked spaghetti, tossed, and served with some basil and parmesan cheese for garnish.
All in all, the slightly acidic and fragrant mushroom salad combined with the warm, hearty spaghetti and a bottle of wine paired well together to create a perfect Italian-inspired dinner for two.