Sing a song of Salmon!

I have been uber busy lately, starting my own business, ushering the girls to skate practice (I now have two Jr Derby-ers) and trying to keep my head above the preverbal waters. My husband is an addict to his martial arts and decided recently to enter a submission wrestling competition, his first in three years.  What that means for our family is that Dad has had longer hours at the gym (longer than normal) and dinner is often less exciting (lower in fat and calories) and more expensive (higher costs due to finer proteins like salmon). This should be depressing, but I have learned to take ½ to ¾ pound of salmon to feed five - and only by portion restriction, do we stop eating. I love salmon anyway. It is such a luxurious fish - sweet and fatty and yet lean and very filling.  I really could eat it every day. I need my own fish hatchery in my back yard, but those pesky little critters taste better when swimming out there with their own favorite critters to eat, and not stuck in a pool eating what amounts to dog food pellets. I digress.

The salmon salad that I'm serving for dinner, I've been daydreaming about since breakfast.  It is the perfect dinner in this springy weather we have been having. I hope you think it is as great as I do! Now you could take this salmon and just eat a big fillet, 4-6 ounces, of it as a main course with a side of fresh steamed veggies and lemon rice, but this salad cuts the protein consumption in nearly half, and compensates for super low calorie lettuce and salad fixins that have great nutritional content. Either way you choose to prepare it, it is still fabulous!


Salmon Salad

Salmon

·       ½ - ¾ pound of salmon fillets

·       Salt

·       Pepper

·       Olive Oil

·       A large lemon sliced very thin

·       A large onion sliced very thin

Drizzle a cookie sheet with a little olive oil - about 1 tablespoon just to keep things lubricated. Arrange the onion around the pan to cove the bottom.  Lay the fish on top of the onion and then salt and pepper the fish.  Arrange the lemon on top of the fish, and then pop the whole thing in the 350^OF oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove and let sit while you prepare your salad.

Salad

·       ½ of a 9 ounce bag of spinach

·       2 heads of romaine lettuce chopped

·       1 small bell pepper

·       1 small cucumber  

·       1 cup cherry tomatoes

·       ½ red onion diced and soaked in ice water for 10 minutes and drained

·       2 teaspoons of capers

    

Take out your plates and arrange the romaine lettuce onto each plate to create a base for your salad. Pop the spinach into the microwave on high for 1 minute*. Then layer the spinach on top of the lettuce on the plates, then divide your veggies equally between all the plates.

Take the lemon off the salmon and discard.  Take the salmon and gently break it apart in a bowl until it is in bite sized or smaller chunks. Discard the onion from the bottom of the pan.

Dressing

·       Juice of 1 lemon or 4 tablespoons of lemon juice

·       Juice of 1 orange or 4 tablespoons of orange juice

·       4 tablespoons of sesame oil

·       2 tablespoons of EV olive oil

·       2 tablespoons of soy sauce

·       1 small bunch of chopped basil

·       1 tablespoon of fresh minced garlic

·       1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger

Wisk all the ingredients together.  Pour ½ the dressing onto the fish.  Toss the fish to coat and gently pile the fish on top of each salad. Pour the remaining dressing over the top of the salad greens and veggies.

*Spinach is packed with iron and other great nutrients, but when spinach is raw it is not able to “give” the nutrients and iron to your body.  By microwaving it, it allows the spinach to break down just a little bit in order to let all the good stuff out, then combining it with the vitamin C from the citrus in the dressing, you body will absorb much more of the iron and nutrients than had you eaten it raw. Good to know!