Salmon & Spinach Parchment Packets

I've been on the hunt for new low-cal recipes as I'm into week 7 of working out hard and really watching what I eat.  My sister-in-law had this great Everyday Food (by Martha Stewart) magazine when we were at their house that I had to buy it when I got home. I was trying to find a new way to eat fish/Salmon and found this recipe.  This is such an easy, good and healthy recipe.  I'll list out what the recipe is and all the different ways you can alter it at the bottom.

Ingredients:
8 ounces baby spinach
1 tablespoon grated orange zest, plus 3 oranges, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds
4 skinless salmon fillets (1 1/2 pounds total)
2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into thin strips (1/4 cup)
1 shallot, thinly sliced
S&P
EVOO

Take 4 pieces of parchment paper.  Divide the spinach and add the orange zest on top and then the orange slices.  I only used 2 oranges myself for 4 packets as I knew my kids wouldn't eat them.

Add the salmon on top of the oranges and salt and pepper liberally.  Add the ginger and shallots on top of the salmon and drizzle with the EVOO.

My husband went Salmon fishing last summer and this Salmon was from that trip.  I had to take the skin off the bottom and I did not have a proper fish knife.  It was tough work, but you definitely don't want fish skin on the bottom mingling with your spinach so skin it if it's not already skinned.

Fold down the parchment paper lengthwise and then tuck under creating little packets.  I labeled each of my packets because my kids got less spinach and seasonings due to their pickiness.

Cook for 15 min.  I really think it would be done in 10-12 as mine was a touch dry.

Ways to alter this recipe:
-I had leeks to use so I swapped those in place of the shallots.  You could also sub in green onions or leave out onions all together.  Chives or dill would be good here too in addition or instead of the onions.
-Use lemon in place of the orange zest and slices. I wouldn't do lime slices, but lime zest would be yummy too.
-I keep ginger in my freezer so I just grated that on top of my salmon instead of cutting into nice sticks.
-When drizzling with EVOO add some fresh lemon or orange juice on top too.
-If you don't like Salmon then swap with halibut or tilapia which are super mild fish.  Depending on the thickness you may need even less time in the oven-especially the tilapia.

Light and Lean: Salmon with Asparagus and Couscous Salad

Summer is quickly approaching and myself like I'm sure many of you want to look your best. I am committing myself to slimming down in time for swimsuit season and will be posting lighter dishes to help us get there.



First up: One of my favorite meals is pretty simple! I love Salmon and perfectly baked asparagus. I added a couscous salad to this and our dinner was nicely balanced and well rounded.

I have been buying the pre-seasoned salmon fillets from Costco for awhile and never noticed the plain individually wrapped ones. They are perfect because I can pull out the exact amount our family is going to eat. If no one eats Salmon in your family then grill up some chicken breasts for an alternative light and lean meal.

Let's talk asparagus for a minute. You may think you don't like asparagus because maybe your mom used to boil it to death (I remember that!) or maybe you've only had it from a can (gag!). Asparagus when cooked MY way is so delicious and you'll want to eat the whole pan - seriously!


Today's Ingredients:
Salmon fillets or a whole Salmon
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Asparagus
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 cups chicken broth
10 oz. couscous
¼ bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped

I didn't take a picure of my Salmon, but we seasoned with the Fox Point seasoning and S&P and grilled on both sides.  You can make the sides below while the Salmon is cooking.  Once the Salmon is done, let it rest for about 5 min. to keep the juices locked in.

Couscous Salad

Thinly slice your garlic. I halved the recipe for the couscous and should have included all of the garlic too. It adds a nice flavor and isn't overpowering at all.


Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

 
Add the chicken broth, season with salt, cover and bring to a boil.


Stir in the couscous and parsley and remove from the heat; cover and let stand for at least 5 minutes before fluffing with a fork.

Asparagus

Heat your oven to 415. Rinse and dry the asparagus. Put it on a cutting board with all the tops aligned.


Take one spear and break it. It will naturally break where the stem is thicker and not as tender.


Use this as a guide and cut all of your other asparagus at this point. This will get rid of the thick unappetizing parts.


Place your spears on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil (maybe about 1 tablespoon or so) and season with S&P. Get your hands dirty and coat turn your spears so they are well coated in the EVOO and S&P


After they are well coated then arrange them in a single file line so they get evenly cooked. Bake at 415 degrees for 10 min. Even if they are thicker asparagus do not overcook. I have done that before and past 10 min. seems to send them over to the mushy side where they aren’t very good.  The olive oil crisps up the tops of the spears and the S&P seasons them perfectly.


So delish, enjoy!

Salmon, Asparagus and Couscous Salad printable recipe

Piccata-Style Fish Fillets with Pasta and Spinach

This is a Rachael Ray recipe I found in her magazine a couple of months ago. It is now part of our regular rotation. If you don't think you are a fish eater then Tilapia fish is for you. It is such a mild tasting fish and really I don't ever know that I'm eating it and it's super low in calories and really healthy. I also wasn't a huge spinach eater until this recipe. A good amount of salt & pepper and the nutmeg in the spinach seasons it perfectly.

Today's Stars:
1/2 pound thin egg pasta or angel hair pasta
4 thin tilapia or snapper fillets
Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil)
4 tablespoons butter
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth
2 lemons
1/4 cup drained capers
A handful of parsley finely chopped

Start your water to boil for the pasta and then start prepping the following: Dice the garlic

Zest the lemon

Juice the lemon you just zested

Slice the other lemon into thin slices

Pat your fish dry and season with salt, pepper, and old bay seasoning on both sides.

Mix your flour and cornstarch together

Dredge your fish in the flour mixture completely covering both sides.

Now to preparing the meal:

The water should be boiling by now so start the pasta cooking. If you are cooking angel hair it won't take long at all.

Heat 1 tbsp of EVOO of medium-high heat and then add 2 tbsp of butter to the pan and let foam up.

Add the fish and let crisp and brown up nicely on both sides. About 4-6 min. on each side. Transfer to a plate and cover lightly with foil (I didn't necessarily do that because sometimes the fish gets soggy from the heat getting trapped in).

Add 1/2 tbsp EVOO and the remaining butter to the pan and cook the garlic for 1 min. and add the wine/chicken broth and cook for an additional minute. Add the lemon juice, zest, lemon slices, capers, and parsley to the broth. Spoon the lemon slices and half the juice over the fish.

At this point the pasta should be done so drain the pasta and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

(Apparently I missed the part about taking out all the lemon slices in the recipe).

Add the reserved water and the pasta to the skillet with the remaining butter sauce and season with S&P and toss. Transfer to a platter.


Add the last 1/2 tbsp of olive oil to the pan and add the spinach and season well with S&P and some grated nutmeg.


This will cook down in about 2 min.

I forgot to get a picture of the finished product because I was famished and just ate it instead. Serve the pasta and spinach alongside the fish.

Additional notes:

-Last time I made this I tried to feed my kids the fish and pasta that were in the sauces and neither of them liked it. This time I set aside 1 fish fillet for them to share and some plain pasta before either of them got sauce on them. The kids both ate their plainish fish and pasta. Yours might like the lemon sauce and capers but mine sure didn't and I hate wasting good food. This way they are pretty much eating what I've already cooked but just modified.

-This time I liberally seasoned the fish and the spinach and it made a world of difference so don't be afraid of some salt, pepper, old bay seasoning, and the nutmeg in the spinach.

-I used leftovers of 1 lemon and some capers from my fridge for this.


Piccata-Style Fish with Spinach

Click on the link to open a PDF recipe. Once the link opens click on print and it will ask you what you want to do so tell it to open and then it will open in PDF. You must have Adobe Reader (free to install from Adobe's website) in order to print the recipe.