Hope you all had a great weekend! We’ve got fish on the brain over here. I was finally able to find wild salmon at one of the grocery stores in small town, Missouri. Very excited. Then onto excitement number 2, this weekend marks the first weekend the hubby caught and brought home rainbow trout! Four of them! Fishing is his new hobby as of a few weeks ago and since there is a beautiful huge river and creek on post, practically in our backyard, it is his new obsession. I am totally fine with it as long as he catches me some fish! This place is a dream for a guy- woods, hunting, fishing, canoeing, all within minutes from our house. Now he never wants to leave Missouri. I, on the other hand, have a little bit harder time entertaining the two little ones while battling the summer heat being a preggo lady. My go-to activity when I am bored at home is cooking- whether it’s something new for breakfast, a snack or dinner….it keeps me busy and feeling productive during the long summer days.
I have lots of yummy recipes to share with you and I wasn’t sure what I should start with! You may have seen salmon on my meal plan the last couple weeks. We try to have salmon once a week and my favorite non-recipe is what I am going to share with you today….but of course I created a recipe just for you! The flavors are simple, clean and not overpowering. It also takes a few minutes to prepare. Love salmon night. I love being able to use the dill from our garden to make this, but mostly I love it because it takes minutes to make.
I have talked about the benefits of salmon here, but let’s talk about farmed raised vs wild for a minute. Wild salmon is preferable to farmed raised salmon because it’s lower in mercury, PCB levels and other contaminants. Farmed raised salmon also have a higher fat content (about 20% more) than wild because they are jam packed in bins with other fishies and can’t swim around as much. The wild can swim free, therefore are more active than their “couch potato” farmed friends. The weight gain from additional fat also results in higher levels of PCBs and other contaminants in the farmed salmon.
Wild salmon have that beautiful red color to them which comes from being in the wild and eating a more nutritious diet. Farmed raised salmon who do not have much color can be given artificial coloring to make them look more pink. So sad. Especially when you can’t find wild salmon! The good news is they are both high in Omega 3 fatty acids, however farmed raised provides a less usable beneficial Omega 3s than wild salmon. There are several other reasons why you should choose wild salmon over farmed raised. For me, it’s only been a question on whether I can find the wild salmon.
So back to this recipe, you can pair it with anything from a pasta or rice side dish, to potato wedges, to tons of veggies. I am currently in an obsession of serving it with this orzo side dish which I will post next so you can make the combo too. Very yummy with all the lemony flavors going on. Hope you are surviving (and ENJOYING!) this summer unlike grumpy me. Here is the salmon and then on to my meal plan for the week.
Very simple ingredients involved. I use this blackened seasoning so look for something similar. It has paprika, onion powder, garlic powder and other spices.
A little spices, fresh dill, tiny bit of butter, layered with lemons.
You’d be surprised with the richness a half of tablespoon of butter brings to the salmon, but if you need to sub olive oil that is ok too.
A drizzle of olive oil before baking will help keep it moist.
As you are eating it, just scrape off some of the lemon which is cooked nicely and eat it with each bite. Mmmm.
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Lemon Dill Salmon
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And onto Meal Planning Monday!!! If you are new here, you can read more about Meal Planning here, here and here.
Menu for the Week of July 9th
Sunday
Fresh out of the Big Piney River- Rainbow Trout Stuffed with Mushrooms, Onion and Bacon; Potato Wedges, Green Salad
Monday
“Cold Dinner”: Chicken Salad, Hummus, Pita Chips or Rice Crackers, Raw Veggie Assortment, Fruit Salad
Tuesday
Shrimp Cobb Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette, Probably Pasta and Veggies for Kids
Wednesday
Breakfast Burritos, Guacamole, Greens with Golden Raisins
Thursday
Falafel, Tzatziki, Pita, Tabouli Salad
Friday
Chicken with Capers and Sweet Cherry Peppers, Rice, Green Bean Almondine (didn’t have this last week afterall)
What are you having this week friends?
Salmon Salad BLT
Grilled Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa and Cilantro Crema
Gingery Pork Meatballs
A Fresh Catch & Greek-Seasoned Salmon Recipe
Well, Greg is gone basically for the next three weeks (accept for Saturdays, hopefully) at a out of town trial. This week is or VBS week so meals will be simple since I am sure to be one tired momma.
Monday–Chicken with sweet peppers and balsamic over quinoa with green beans I will be doubling this for the Smith clan.
Tuesday–Bean and cheese burritos for the kids and a mexican type salad for momma
Wednesday–the sweet wife of the mentor couple in our Sunday school class is bringing dinner for us
Thursday–leftovers or if not enough we will have lettuce wraps
Friday–something egg/breakfast related
Saturday–since this will be the only family meal ofthe week we will celebrate with steaks on the grill, quinoa or sweet potatoes, and frozen mixed veggies which I can’t stand but they are Greg’s favorite. He is probably one of the 10 people in the world who LOVES kidney beans.
So here is the just trying to survive the week and not feed my kids fast food (hopefully) menu:)
Sounds like you have a plan Gretchen! Hope the week goes by fast for you!
It may appear that my family is getting little to no protein….but they are! We make their lunches every day and I make sure they get some healthy protein. Just had to put that out there!
Sunday: Baked potatoes….loaded for the fam with bacon and cheese. Oven roasted broccoli and watermelon.
Monday: Gretchen’s yumminess
Tuesday: I am hosting something that night and Luck has a meeting…so NOTHING! Kids will eat with my parents. I am serving your fabulous 7 layer hummus (minus the best part…feta!).
Wednesday: Oven roasted sweet potatoes, mixed greens salad, fruit, and some natural sausage Luck bought today for my meat eaters. I am not too well right now, so he shopped for us. I don’t even know what all he bought!
Thursday: Black bean burgers with guacamole, chips, and fruit. (Still have never made these. No idea if they will be good gluten free)
Friday: Make pizza! I am going to just eat mine without cheese and load it with sun dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts. The kids and Luck will have meat.
Saturday: Whichever of these meals I don’t end up doing when I planned!
This has helped me stay on budget and not cheat by picking something up. If I have a plan, I will follow it! Thank you!
Hope you feel better Brittany! And thank YOU for participating every week!!
Oh, Melanie… I wish I had a better plan to share, but as you know the 1st trimester is not the time you feel like being in the kitchen 🙁 And, lately the evening has been the hardest time for me and food 🙁
I did, however, make lebanese stuffed pitas for Brian and I last night.
I also have on the list: your delicious vegetable soup and crusty bread!
Homemade pizza… and I’m going to make these little egg frittatas. I figure they would be a good thing to have around b/c I’m always craving some sort of egg sandwich around 9:00 every morning! Ha!
I’m hoping next week I’ll be back with a better plan 🙂 I’m sure this week will shape up just fine!
Miss you so much–
Amy
Oh yes, dear Amy. It seems like you are doing pretty darn well! I remember a lot of pancakes, bagels and pizza pockets in those first weeks when I felt horrible. Luckily it didn’t last too long!
Here’s our plan for the week:
Sunday: Baked Ham, Scalloped Potatoes, Green Bean Casserole, PW’s Blueberry Cobbler
Monday: BBQ Ribs, Baked Beans, Watermelon
Tuesday: Grilled Turkey, Tomato and Muenster Cheese Sandwiches and/or Salad, Watermelon
Wednesday: Grilled Brats/Hot Dogs, Sweet Potato Fries, Fresh Fruit
Thursday: Shrimp and Pepper Kabobs, Grilled Squash/Onions, Homemade Crescent Rolls
Friday: Leftovers
Saturday: Homemade Pizza, carrots and fruit
http://forfreeyatake.blogspot.com/2011/07/weekly-meal-planjuly-10-16.html
That is too funny-2 nights ago I made lemon dill salmon–almost the exact way except I added tiny pieces of garlic and thought, this is so good will have to tell Mel about it-and there is your great version!! I ate it cold for lunch and was great! Sounds like the boys are getting some great fish for you to cook! Mimi
Nothing beats wild salmon! I’m giving away an entire case of Alaskan Salmon so stop by if you’d like.
Melanie, I made this last night and couldn’t believe 1) how easy it was and 2) how good it tasted. My wife is a very skeptical fish eater, due to the fishy taste, but she really loved this recipe. I cooked it for 18 minutes and it came out with a perfect flakiness and texture. Nice one!!!
Omar! I am so happy to hear that the recipes turned out! Thanks for the comments and thanks for following 😉