Whole 30 Thursday: Salmon

Yes, I’m a wee bit lot late with this post.  It was supposed to be here last Thursday but I just didn’t get to it.  Patience, Grasshopper!

Last week’ recipe from the Whole 30 Fast and Easy cookbook was Ancho-Clementine Salmon with  Herbed Sweet Potato Fries and, like all the other recipes I have tried in the book, it was quite tasty.

The salmon was rubbed with a mix of orange zest, oregano, garlic powder and salt.  The recipe also called for ground ancho chile powder but I don’t use/like that so I used some cajun seasoning and cut back on the salt.

The fries were tossed with EVOO, oregano, garlic powder, rosemary salt, pepper and thyme.

All of it made for a delicious lunch that was ready in no time.

The recipe is on page 126.

Kayte is getting ready for school these days so she’ll get to this eventually.

While we will not be posting the actual recipes from the book (we encourage you to honor the author and to buy the book so that you can own the recipes yourselves), we will share our photos and  ingredients and comments on each. If you would like to join in, just leave the link to your post so we can come and read all about it.  Even if you aren’t eating Whole 30ish, the recipes and food are wonderful and fit into any meal plan.

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{EwE} Sauce it Up!

This week Kayte wants us to be SAUCY!!  Cook anything with a sauce.  Easy enough.

I went with Ellie’s salmon in aromatic tomato sauce with swiss chard spinach.  I am not a fan of chard so subbing spinach was easy.

And totally delicious.  A nice sauce made with diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, roasted red peppers, and whole red chili peppers.  I don’t like REALLY hot food.  Spicy, yes, but not tongue burning so I left out the chili peppers.  But since I did that I used Ro-tel diced tomatoes with green peppers.  Plenty hot and plenty spicy.  And lots of flavor with the coriander and cumin.

Ellie suggested  eating this over couscous but since I am trying to stay pretty compliant with Whole30 program.  It was perfect just by itself.

The recipe is from Ellie’s So Easy (page 195}.  You can also find it HERE if you want to try it.

For more Saucy dishes -> Sauce it Up.

We don’t publish the recipes.  Please buy Ellie’s books and cook along with us.  The weekly themes are on the right of Eating with Ellie.  We publish every Thursday.

 

{CC#15} seared salmon benedict

I was getting a little tired of eggs for breakfast.  I mean, I love eggs – scrambled, poached, fried – but not EVERY morning.  I miss my cereal and oatmeal and English muffins.  But they will all still be there when I am ready to eat them again.

Now, I know this sounds silly, but just eating an egg for lunch was a nice change.  {I had leftover gumbo for breakfast! It’s a topsy-turvy world!}   I had a nice poached egg over a piece of seared salmon with a touch of  Hollandaise on top.  More commonly known as Salmon Benedict.  It with a nice change.

The recipe for the salmon is on page 210 of The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom. but you can also find it on the Whole30 site along with the Hollandaise recipe (page 314) {in which I used less lemon and it was perfect}. Perfect poached egg is on page 150.

I have to tell you I think I could eat this every day.  I loved the mix of the soft yolk with the crisped salmon and the luxuriousness of the Hollandaise.  Yep!  Definite repeat.

We are beginning our third week of The Whole30 program and plan to follow it ’til Easter. We can do this!!  I am starting to feel the benefits of the program now.  My eyes are brighter, my coat is shinier… just kidding.  But I am feeling good, not craving anything like I usually do,  and feel like I am doing the right thing on this program.  I started this program to lower my VERY, VERY high triglycerides and see if I could lower my blood pressure. Losing weight was also a consideration but not the most important one.

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown 15 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).

 

{EwE} One Fish, Two Fish…

Red Fish

Blue Fish

This week’s EwE theme was FISH!  But I guess you had figured that out already!

For some reason I had Dr. Seuss in my head the week I was supposed to come up with a theme and this one just popped into my head.  Could have been worse, I could have been thinking of Green Eggs and Ham or The Lorax or The Cat in the Hat.  I don’t think any of them would have made a good meal.  But fish – that’s a different story.

What about  broiled spicy salmon on a pita bread with spicy onions and sliced cukes? Yes?

Good answer!

open-face mediterranean salmon sandwiches

The whole dish contains tumeric, coriander, cumin, and cayenne. which are mixed with EVOO then spread over the fish before it is broiled.  The rest is heated in a sauce pan to cook the onions and garlic.  So.  Much.  Flavor!

Long slices of cucumber on a Pita bread {I used a whole grain one.} topped with sauteed onions topped with the salmon.

There is also a sauce made with plain yogurt, scallions, and lemon.  It was supposed to be OVER the fish but I really didn’t like it after it was made so I just put a little container of it one the side for the pictures.

I thought it might be dry with the sauce but the salmon wasn’t overcooked and the cucumbers added just enough moisture.  This was REALLY good!  Definitely a repeat.

The recipe is from Ellie’s Weeknight Wonders page 81 so it took less than 30 minutes to put together.

Want more fish dishes – Check out Eating with Ellie this week.  You’ll be glad you did.

And if you want to join us the themes are posted  Just cook, blog, and leave a comment on the theme page.  Love to have you.

 

{EwE}Baked Salmon and Kale in Moroccan-Spiced Tomato Sauce

This week he theme for Eating with Ellie is Seafood.  That covers a lot of territory.  Fish, shrimp, lobster, crawfish, even squid.  While I would have liked to have some calamari I decided to play it safe this week and go with some lovely salmon.

I’ve been eating a lot of salmon these past few weeks because of the fresh they have had available at a decent price, for a change.  It’s wild caught so it’s really good.

Ellie has this salmon baked in a Moroccan sauce flavored with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and ginger.  The kitchen smelled so good!  I made 1/2 a batch and it was plenty for two meals.

The recipe called for Kale but I am not a fan so I subbed in some spinach.  The only change I would make would be to double the spices, or at least to increase them.  The flavor was a tad mild.  I cut them in 1/2 since I was making only 1/2 a batch.  I wish I had left the spices in for a whole batch.

But, it was good.

The recipe is on Ellie’s Blog.

Check out what else from the sea was cooked this week – Eating with Ellie.

 

{WWDH} salmon and brown rice salad

Who said salad has to made from greens or pasta?  What about rice?  Brown rice?  When Kayte chose Sensational Salads for this weeks WWDH theme the first thought that came to mind was a GREEN salad.  And that is what I looked for – at first – but then I thought about pasta salad, potato salad, even fruit salad.  Rice never really entered my mind until I found Donna’s recipe with brown rice and salmon.

And I am so glad I did.  Full of Asian flavors, salmon, carrots.  It was wonderful.

Simply cook brown rice.  Mix it with some flaked salmon, shredded carrots and a dressing of mirin, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and ginger and you have a lovely, filling, tasty salad suitable for lunch or dinner.

Donna’s recipe called for smoked salmon but I used some steamed salmon instead.  I also didn’t have the snow peas she called for but I didn’t miss them.  The salad is supposed to be served totally chilled but I am not a fan of cold rice so I served it warmed.  Good choice!

I will definitely make this one again.  Glad I made extra rice!

The recipe is on Donna’s website.

Did the others go green with salads?  Check our links.

 

{SRC} Gourmet Cooking IS Possible

I like to cook. No, I LOVE to cook. Good thing since I need to feed my family. But I only really learned to cook about 10 years ago or so. Beautiful Daughter used to come home and ask me what I was burning for supper that night. I know. But I love her anyway. Cooking was just something I did. NOW it’s something I DO!! And thanks to blogs like Living the Gourmet, which was my Secret Recipe Club ‘assignment” this month, it gets easier all the time.  Catherine, Tammy, and Michael Pappas are the people behind the blog.  Catherine is the founder who wanted a way to leave recipes for her children.  Tammy, her daughter, is the photographer (and her photos are beautiful).  Michael, her son, is in charge of interviews and product reviews.  The three of them are quite a team.

As usual it was hard to find just one recipe, so as is my habit I narrowed it down to three. (Why three?  Once I get my assignment I take a week to read and then try to cook one recipe each week until the reveal.  Makes it easier.)

The first recipe I tried was

ASIAN STYLE MARINATED SALMON FILET 

A wonderfully flavored salmon fillet marinated in

3 tbs. teriyaki sauce
2 tbs. rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. orange marmalade or apricot sauce
¼ cup of Italian parsley – chopped
1 large clove of garlic – chopped

1 inch piece of fresh ginger – chopped
1 tbs. sesame oil
2 tbs. soy sauce

then baked grilled until the fish is flaky. I’m glad I made two fillets because it was delicious.

Next came

YELLOW SQUASH WITH SAUSAGE AND PASTA

A delicious mix of pasta, Italian sausage, yellow squash {I subbed in a zucchini}
Catherine’s recipe called for Italian sausage, yellow squash, lots of garlic, red onion, Italian parsley, fresh basil, red pepper flakes and dried oregano for flavor. There is no way you would not like this one.

And THEN there’s dessert….

This is no-churn HONEY VANILLA AND BROWN SUGAR ICE CREAM.

I love making no-churn ice cream. I’ve made ice cream in a table top churn for eons but sometimes you just want something easier. And these no-churn definitely are. If you have made this you know it is super simple. Whip together 2 cups of heavy cream with 1 can sweetened condensed milk and a 1 tsp vanilla. Catherine added in ¼ cup brown sugar and 3-4 tbs. honey. Catherine garnished hers with mini cookies but I didn’t have any so I used turbinado sugar.  The honey definitely adds an extra layer of flavor.

I think this one just became my favorite one.

Thanks, Living the Gourmet for some great recipes still to come.

There’s more for Secret Recipe Club.  Click on the frog.

 

{IHCC} Potluck with wild rice and salmon

Last week I was in one of our local bookstores. They were having a BOGO $1 on the bargain books. Including a whole slew of cook books. I had promised myself I wasn’t going to buy Any.More.Cookbooks. I don’t need them. I have more than recipes I will ever use, which I know is NOT the reason we buy cookbooks, but I really DON’T need any more. REALLY! But this sale was just TOO good. So, since I have no self control…

Bittman for $4.00. I could NOT pass that up. Or Krieger. Or Hay. So I buckled under and bought the books. Lucky for me POTLUCK this week so I am using at least one of my unnecessary purchases. Bittman for Potluck!

Wild Rice with Celery and Steamed Salmon

I have to admit I have NEVER cooked Wild Rice before. Eaten yes, cooked, no! I was a little leary. But while it took FOREVER {58 minutes} it was delicious. The celery, garlic, onions, bay leaf added so much flavor. And so much better than white rice. I loved the idea that the salmon was steamed on top of the rice before the rice was completely finished. It did make it a one pot meal. I think I would like to add some color to this one – red or orange bell peppers would be nice.

The recipe is HERE! It is delicious. Low cal. Dellicous. Healthy food. And, as Bittman would say – Food Matters!

Check out the other Potluck dishes at I heart Cooking Club.

 

{30 Minute Thursdays} Farfalle al Salmone

If there is one thing I love, it is any type of seafood. If there is one thing I don’t love, it is cooking for one. Just me. Alone. By myself. But that is where I find myself right now. Not for long, but long enough.

What’s the easiest thing to cook just for one that is quick – PASTA!! And since I’m not getting home until later I really have to rummage to find something to cook with pasta. I was excited to find a single Salmon fillet in the freezer which meant I could make this….

Farfalle with Fresh Salmon.

Since I only had one 4 oz salmon fillet I made about 1/3 of the recipe. And it was super simple. Saute garlic with red pepper flakes. Add chopped fresh tomatoes (which I did not have so used some frozen whole blanched I had put up early this summer) Add sliced salmon and fresh basil. throw in some cream and toss with the pasta. Super Simple and Super Tasty.

And if you want to know what pasta for one looks like –

A litle pile of pasta. Dang but I’ll be glad when The Hubs is home again.

Check out what Kayte made for 30 Minute Thursdays. Why don’t you join us? The recipe is from Hazans 30 Minute Pastas on page 118. If you like super simple you will LOVE this book.