Salmon Sandwich with Special Ten Ingredient Mayonnaise

You might remember this picnic I made Malcolm for his birthday:  When I showed it to you the first time, I also told you I would show you how to make this special birthday sandwich.  It's taken me a while, but here it is:



First Step: Go shopping for your ingredients!  I tried to go organic for the produce and fish elements of the meal, partially because I can only afford it for specials and partially because it tastes better that way.  Proably.

 

You Will Need:

For Preparing the Salmon:
salmon fillet of whatever size you like, skin on
olive oil
thyme
salt
pepper

For the Sandwich:
thinly sliced, hard-crusted wheat bread
arugula
half a red onion
Optional:
tomatoes, avocados

For the Special 10-Ingredient Mayonnaise:
1-mayonnaise
2-olive oil
3-lemon juice
4-Braun's spicy mustard
5-freshly chopped basil leaves
6-freshly chopped dill
7-the juice from a caper jar
8-salt
9-pepper
10-love*

* Please don't ask the cashier where to find/how to pay for love.  You have been warned.

Second Step: Take your salmon fillet and rub it with salt, pepper, about a tablespoon of olive oil, and some sprigs of fresh thyme.  (Which you should grow on your balcony/porch/front stoop.)  Then bake in the oven at 475 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.  This intense but brief heat really helps keep the moisture and flavor in the fish. 

Third Step: Take a fork and flake the yummy cooked salmon off the skin; it should come right off.

Fourth Step: Wash the arugula, snap off the over-long stems and leave it in a cup of water so it can be extra crunchy.

Fifth Step: sautee your red onions so they get a little sweet, a little more potent.

Sixth Step: Make your Special 10 Ingredient Mayo.  The mayo is made by mixing approximately:
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon of spicy mustard
1/4 tablespoon chopped dill
3/4 tablespoon chopped basil
2 teaspoons juice from the caper jar
salt to taste
pepper to taste
love to taste- And yes, I am just THAT cheesy. 
... but really, you should just add these ingredients in a combination that pleases you.  I didn't really measure while I mixed it up.

Seventh Step: Assemble ingredients and admire them.

Eighth & Ninth Step: Toast your wheat bread and spread it with special 10-ingredient mayonnaise.

Eleventh Step: Create a bed of arugula.

Twelfth Step: Add an inspiring layer of your flaked salmon.

Thirteenth Step: Add your lovely cooked/slightly blackened/sauteed red onions.

Optional Step: Add tomatoes or avocados if you feel like it:

Fourteenth (or Fifteenth) Step: Add final piece bread and cut in half. Admire. Possibly admire through your camera's viewfinder like I did.

Final Step: Give your boyfriend his sandwich.  Yay!  Remember to eat a sandwich yourself, silly, you've worked hard!