Salmon Poached in Champagne with Honey Mustard Sauce

I guess we are one of the very few families that will have leftover champagne in the house. I mean, who wouldn't finish a bottle of champagne? Well, unless we have guests coming over, we are not big fans of alcohol and we don't usually have alcohol for consecutive nights. So we always have leftover bottles of wine or champagne in the fridge, and they are always good for cooking seafood dishes.
I had cooked a similar dish using parchment paper as a pouch to wrap up individual portions, and added just a splash of wine in the pouch. The kids liked it because they get to open up their own pouch at the table. But tonight I wanted to use up all my leftover champagne. So I decided to use a casserole dish and submerge the fish completely in the champagne. 

Here is the Salmon Poached in Champagne with Honey Mustard Sauce from my kitchen:

Ingredients (make 4 servings)
2 lb. skinless salmon fillets, cut into 4 pieces
4 cups champagnes
2 bell peppers, thinly sliced
salt
freshly ground black pepper
chopped fresh parsley to garnish

For the sauce:
1 tsp. whole grain mustard
1 tsp. honey
1 tsp. butter
1 tsp. flour

How

1. First poach the salmon. Preheat the oven to 300C. Pour the champagne into a casserole dish then place the salmon fillets in the champagne in a single layer. Generously sprinkle salt and pepper on the salmon.
   
2. Scatter the sliced bell peppers on the salmon and season with salt and pepper again. Tightly cover the casserole with tin foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. My champagne was right out of the fridge. If the champagne that you use is not as cold, adjust the cooking time accordingly.
   
   
3. After 30 minutes, or your adjusted cooking time, take out the casserole and carefully open the tin foil. Be careful of the hot steam. Check on the salmon to see if it is cooked. If not, tightly cover the casserole with tin foil again and return it to the oven for another 5 -10 minutes.
4. While waiting for the salmon to cook, get the sauce ready. In a pan, melt the butter on low heat then sprinkle in the flour. Stir with a spatula to make the butter and flour blend together smoothly. Continue to cook and stir on low heat for 5 minutes. At this point, if the salmon is not yet done, remove the pan from heat and wait.
   
5. When the salmon is done, carefully pour the hot liquid from the casserole into the pan of flour/butter mixture. Cook the sauce on low heat and continuously stir the mixture to avoid any lumps. Leave the salmon and bell peppers in the casserole covered with tin foil to keep warm.
6. Add whole grain mustard and honey into the sauce and stir well then remove the pan from heat.
   
7. To serve, place a thin layer of the sauce in the middle of the serving plate. Use a spatula, gently take out a slice of salmon and place it on the sauce. Place sliced bell pepper beside the salmon and serve hot immediately.