Chili Maple Glazed Salmon

I'm so behind on posts!  I have a handful of recipes and crafts to write up, and the backlog keeps mounting.  Oh noes.  Well, clearly the solution is an 11 p.m. blog post on a Saturday night.  Afterwards, I'll reward myself with some popcorn and Doctor Who.

I loved it, but this recipe came with some mixed reviews from my dining companions.  My son generally won't touch fish, so we'll not count his opinion.  My husband took one bite and was horrified by the presence of maple flavor on his fish.  Maybe I should have prepped him beforehand?  I think the reaction was more out of shock than an actual dislike of the flavor.  Me?  I loved it, and it reminded me a lot of my spicy honey BBQ chicken recipe, which my hubby LOVES, so he's inconsistent in my book.  That's nothing new.  :)  A Seattle-ite friend says this is how she used to make salmon when she lived in Washington, so I take that as another vote of confidence.  All that being said, the message is: this is a tasty way to make salmon, and will go over well if you prep your audience that it is a spice rub with a sweet glaze.  No more shock and awe treatments in my dining room.  Lesson learned.

Ingredients

• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt
• 1 large salmon fillet
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup

Directions

1. Preheat broiler.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil but do NOT spray with Pam.  If you keep it unsprayed, after the fish is cooked you can simply slide the fish off of the skin with a spatula (the skin will stick to the foil).  Love this trick.
2. Combine spices and salt.  Rub the spice mixture all over the salmon (but not on the skin).
3. Place salmon on baking sheet and broil for 6-10 minutes, until just shy of fully cooked.  
4. Remove from oven, pour on maple syrup, and spread evenly with a pastry brush.  Broil for 1 more minute or until nicely glazed and just cooked.
5. Remove from oven and let rest.  The salmon will continue cooking a bit more while resting, so be sure not to overcook.  Because you (most likely) will be dividing the fillet into 2 or more servings, when you cut it you can check the done-ness.  If necessary, you can pop in the oven a couple more minutes to finish cooking.