The perfect Salmon Loaf

The past several months I have been on a mission to create my own version of the perfect Salmon Loaf. What got me started on this mission is my love of Amys brand veggie Loaf tv dinner. It is the only frozen dinner I like and I found myself eating it way too often. One night my husband suggested I lean to make it myself. Great idea! Fast forward to three failed attempts at vegan loaf wasting way too much food, time and effort. Then I decided to scratch trying to make it vegan (I'm not vegan but I wanted to copy the Amys loaf as close as possible. Yes I know the actual tv dinner is not vegan since the mushroom sauce has honey in it. But the loaf is and that is what I wanted to make). I would try making a loaf again, only this time I would include eggs and Salmon. So the obsession began. First I consulted my 1946 Better Homes and Gardens cook book. Here is the recipe I found:

1946 Salmon or Tuna Loaf

1 tbsp lemon juice
2 cups flaked Salmon or Tuna
1 cup medium white sauce
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup dry bread crumbs

Add lemon juice to Salmon; add remaining ingredients; mix well. Baked in greased baking dish in moderate oven (350 F) until brown and set, about 30 minutes. Serves 6.




This recipe was a failure for me. First, 'medium white sauce' is a milk based sauce so it is asking for a cup and a half of milk. Way too much liquid! Maybe it didn't work for me since I used fat free Lactaid milk? One egg was not enough to make it rise at all. Mine ended up a pile of hot fishy mush. I realized that it probably would be better if I pre-cooked the salmon and veggies first to cook out most their moisture. I also decided that it really didn't need milk at all so I omitted it. Also, it was really bland so I decided my next attempt would have more veggies and spices in it. Last night I had another go at it. Here is what I came up with:

Voodoo Stitches Salmon Loaf

1 1/2 - 2 cups minced Salmon
1/2 - 3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
5-6 peices of shredded fresh bread
3 celery stalks chopped fine
1/2 zucchini chopped fine
1/4 bell pepper chopped fine
1/4 onion chopped fine
1 carrot chopped fine
1/2 jalapeno chopped fine
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 eggs
3 tbsp tomato sauce (I used pizza sauce)
1/2 tsp baking powder
salt and pepper to taste
dash of sage
dash of dill
dash of oregano
dash of cinnamon
dash of brown sugar
dash of paprika
dash of chipotle powder

Preheat oven to 375. Oil and flour a baking pan and set a side. First cook fine chopped carrots, onion and celery on the cook top in a pan on medium heat for 1-2 minutes or as soon as the celery become tender. Add a little bit of oil to the pan if need be to avoid sticking. (I used a non-stick pan) Add in salmon and the rest of the veggies. Cook until the salmon is no longer pink and most the moisture is cooked out of the veggies. Set aside until cook and then pour the cooked mix into a large mixing bowl. Add in the lemon juice, eggs, spices, baking powder and tomato sauce. Add in the dry and fresh bread crumbs and mix well. If it still is too moist add more bread crumbs as needed. Pour it into the baking pan and shape into a loaf. Bake covered with foil for 30 minutes, uncover it and continue baking for another 20-30 minutes or until done.

 This time it turned out awesome. Not too dry, not too mushy. The addition of the extra eggs and baking powder was just what it needed to fluff up into an actual loaf shape and the extra veggies and spices gave it the zing it needed. We had it for dinner last night with mashed potatoes, steamed fresh green beans and mushroom gravy. Perfection!