Bacon Wrapped Salmon Cakes

I came across this recipe about a week ago and I knew I had to make it as an appetizer for Thanksgiving. It was a huge hit! I was worried I made too many and I wasn't sure how they'd taste as leftovers. I didn't have to worry about that, since there was none to bring home! I found the recipe at Food Renegade's website. I stuck to the recipe for the most part with a few minor changes, the biggest being that I used canned wild caught salmon instead of fresh. Please check out Food Renegade's version, but here is what I did (I also doubled her recipe):

2 14 oz cans of wild-caught Alaskan salmon
pat of real butter
2 tbsp finely diced onion
2 garlic clove, finely diced
1 1/3 c. pine nuts
2 tbsp homemade mayo
2 tsp Parmesan cheese
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp old creole seasoning
1 tbsp fresh parsley
1 egg white
bunch fresh asparagus
nitrate free bacon - I used about 1.5 packages

Pulse pine nuts in a food processor just until right before they almost turn into a nut butter. In a large bowl mix the can salmon and pine nuts. In a small skillet, melt butter and saute onions and garlic until they are soft and translucent. Add them to the salmon. Add mayo, parmesan, mustard, seasoning, parsley and one egg white. Mix well and refrigerate for an hour or overnight. Do not add salt, as the bacon and parmesan will add PLENTY of salt to the dish (this is coming from someone who loves salt.)

Cut the tips of your asparagus off at about 2 inches. Then cut about two more inches of the tender part of the apsaragus off. Save the rest of the asparagus for a soup or other dish later in the week. Cut each bacon strip in half. Place 2-3 asparagus pieces in the middle of the bacon. Using a 2 tbsp scoop, scoop out salmon mixture and place on asparagus. Wrap the bacon tightly. You could pin with a toothpick but I didn't have any so I just laid them seam side down on a rack. Place the rack over a cookie sheet. I found that baking them at 325 for 40 minutes was about right. The original recipe said 375 for 20, but my bacon was burning on the edges and raw in the middle. I found slower for longer did the trick with my bacon/oven combo.

I made some homemade tartar sauce to go along with them. I mixed homemade mayo with homemade pickle relish, anchovy paste, tarragon, salt, pepper and lemon juice. I have no idea if this is "authentic" tartar sauce but it was tasty!