Game Plan

Appears in

Published 1997

Preheat the oven. Chill the white wine. If possible, set the table ahead of time.
Quickly marinate the salmon; cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature.
Make the browned butter for the cake, put the cake together, and place in the oven. You now have 45 minutes, while the cake bakes, to get everything else done.
Make the salad: Wash and dry the lettuce; refrigerate. Make the dressing (or just take out the oil and vinegar, which you can drizzle on as you toss the salad greens).
Cook the rice: Rice takes longer than the salmon, so you want to start it first. If necessary, the finished rice can be kept warm. (If you were adding a green vegetable to this menu, you could start the rice, put on steaming water for the vegetable, then start the salmon, then put on the green vegetable.)
Now, we’re getting close to countdown, cooking the foods that will be served as the guests sit down.
Take the cake out of the oven and place on a rack to cool. Raise the oven temperature to broil. Broil the salmon.
Toss the salad; place on serving plates. Set out bread and butter.
Transfer the salmon to warm serving plates. Spoon on some of the rice pilaf; garnish with a fresh herb or watercress sprig if you like. Pour more wine and dig in.
After dinner, dessert is ready and waiting, with nothing to do but serve the cake.