Salmon and Citrus Rice Bowl

Now that I'm out of the first trimester I can stand going to Publix again and smelling the seafood department. I can also stand eating fish again (on some occasions). Because of this I really wanted to cook a salmon dish because it's so healthy and I hadn't eaten it for a while. This Martha Stewart recipe had been sitting in my recipe drawer for a whlie so I thought I'd try it since I figured Charlotte loves rice and oranges so she'd at least eat some of it. The dish was good if a little bland. I'll probably add some soy sauce to the rice and maybe some salt and pepper to the peas next time. But it was a very good recipe that I'll definitely make again!

Salmon and Citrus Rice Bowl
Serves 4

4 navel oranges
1/4 ounce (1 inch piece) fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced, plus 1 teaspoon finely grated
1 dried bay leaf
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
1 tablespoon brown-rice vinegar
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 pound skinless salmon fillets
1 cup uncooked brown rice
5 ounces (1 1/2 cupes) sugar snap peas, cut into 1/2 inch slices

1. Cut away peel and pith from 2 oranges. Cut between orange membranes, and let fruit and juice fall into a bowl. Squeeze juice into bowl and discard membranes. Cut segments into small pieces, and place in a separate bowl. Juice remaining 2 oranges and add juice to bowl (for a total of 1 cup).
2. Bring orange juice, sliced ginger, bay leaf, and coriander to a boil in a small saucepan. Cook until mixture is reduced to 2/3 cup, about 6 minutes. Let cool completely. Straing, and whisk in vinegar, soy sauce, honey, and oil.
3. Combine 3 tablespoons juice mixture and salmon in a resealable plastic bag, turning to coat. Refrigerate salmon and remaining juice mixture for at least 1 1/2 hours (or up to 3 hours).
4. Cook rice according to package instructions.
5. Preheat broiler. Remove salmon from marinade, and pat dry with paper towels. Discard marinade. Place fillets on a baking sheet, and broil until cooked to desired doneness, about 5 minutes for medium. Transfer to a dish. Let salmon cool slightly, and flake into bite sized pieces.
6. Divide rice among four bowls. Top with salmon, peas, and orange segments. Drizzle each serving with 1 1/2 tablespoons of the reserved juice mixture.

Baked Parmesan Fish

When I was reading my friend Catherine's blog a few weeks ago I saw this recipe and thought I'd give it a try. Jason and I are always up for a fish recipe. I took Catherine's advice and added a small jar of Bruschetta sauce to the recipe and it was fantastic. Jason picked most of the mushrooms out (of course) but Charlotte and I loved them. And it was really easy! Great meal for when you only have a little bit of prep time. I also used salmon like Catherine did and I was worried about getting the skin off once I had cooked the fish, but the skin sticks to the roating pan (which is the kind of pan that I used) and so it wasn't a problem at all! Catherine got this recipe from the Nestle Cookbook.
Baked Parmesan Fish with Pasta
1/3 cup grated fat free Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon all purpose flour
3 thyme springs, leaves removed and crushed (I used regular thyme in the bottle)
4 white fish fillets (6 oz each) (I used Salmon and it was great)
1 package (9 oz) Buitoni Refrigerated Angel Hair Pasta
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup halved mushroom caps (I used sliced mushrooms)
1/2 cup finely sliced green onions
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small jar of Bruschetta sauce (I added this to the recipe)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350
Place cheese, flour, and thyme in paper bag (I used ziploc). Individually coat fish by gently shaking in bag; discard coating ingredients. Place fish in baking pan with rack.
Bake for 20 minutes or until fish flakes easily.
Prepare pasta according to package directions.
Heat large, nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add onion, mushrooms, green onions, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions are tender. Season with salt and ground black pepper.
Place past on oven-warmed plates. Attractively arrange fish over pasta. Serve with mushroom medly over fish and pasta. Garnish with thyme, if desired.

TIP: you can use most firm, white fish fillets, including swordfish, sole, halibut, or red snapper.
Prep: 15 min
Cooking: 25 min

Sesame Salmon and Hunan Noodles

A few years ago my parents went to Colorado and my Mom brought me back Colorado Collage which is the cookbook from the Junior League of Denver. I LOVE collecting Junior League cookbooks from around the country because their recipes are always so good! This cookbook has intimidated me though because all of the recipes sound so sophisticated and are so different than the staples that we make in the South. But a few weeks ago I endeavored to try something. For the past month or so I've been working at finding new recipes in the myriad of cookbooks that I own and so I found this recipe in the Colorado cookbook. Let me tell you, it was a good recipe! There are a few things that I would change the next time I made it (which I'll note at the bottom) but all together a very good (and pretty healthy!) meal!

Sesame Salmon and Hunan Noodles
Serves 4

6-8 ounces dried oriental-style noodles
4 T Sesame Oil, divided
1/2 c Soy Sauce, divided
2 T Rice Wine Vinegar
1 T Sugar
1 T Hot Chili Oil
1 T plus 1 t peeled, minced fresh ginger root, divided
2 T sliced Green Onions
1/3 c Fresh Peas, cut into thirds
1/3 c Shredded Carrots
1/3 c Sliced Fresh Mushrooms
1/3 c Thinly Sliced Red Bell Pepper
3-4 T Fresh Lemon Juice
Freshly Ground Pepper
4 4-ounce Salmon Filet's

Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain well, place in a large bowl and toss with 2 T of the Sesame oil. In a small bow, combine 1/4 c of the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, hot chili oil, and 1 t of the ginger. Stir until well blended and add to noodles. Toss to blend. Add green onions, peas, carrots, mushrooms, and bell pepper. Toss and chill 2 hours.

In a shallow glass dish, combine lemon juice, remaining 1/4 c soy sauce, remaining 2 T sesame oil, remaining 1 T ginger and pepper to taste. Add salmon and turn to coat. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill 2 hours. Preheat grill to medium-high. Grill salmon, discarding marinade, 4-5 minutes per side. Serve salmon on noodle mixture. Serve immediately or chill and serve cold.

*Note: I couldn't find 'Rice' Wine vinegar in the grocery store and so I used the 'Wine Vinegar' that was with all of the oriental fixings.
*Note: I couldn't find Hot Chili Oil and so I substituted 1/2 teaspoon of Chili Sauce with Garlic
*Note: I decided to saute the vegetables in olive oil before putting in the pasta, but that's just a personal preference.
*Note: Jason preferred the pasta to be served immediately while still warm. It was ok with the pasta cold but I agree that it would probably be better all hot. And we definitely served it while the salmon was fresh off of the grill!

Creamy Rotini and Salmon

Here's another great recipe from Family Circle. This one is pretty good for you to with the salmon, enriched pasta, and fat-free half and half! It's pretty easy too!

Creamy Rotini and Salmon

Makes 6 servings

1/2 pound Salmon Fillet (1 piece)

1 box (14 1/2 oz) omega-3-enriched Rotini Pasta

2 c Fat-Free Half and Half

2 t Cornstarch

1/4 t Salt

1/4 t Ground Nutmeg

1/8 t Cayenne Pepper

1 box (10 oz) Frozen Peas, thawed

1/2 c Parmesan Cheese

1/3 c Toasted Walnuts, coarsely chopped

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Coat a small baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add salmon to pan and bake at 450 for 12 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, cook pasta following package directions. Drain and return to pot.

3. While pasta is cooking, whisk together half-and-half, cornstarch, salt, nutmeg, and cayenne. Place in medium-size saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer on low for 1 minute until sauce thickens.

4. Add peas and simmer for an additional minute, until peas are heated through. Remove from heat; stir in 1/4 c of the Parmesan cheese

5. Stir sauce into drained pasta.

6. Remove skin from salmon and discard. Flake salmon into bite-size pieces and gently stir into pasta. Top with remaining 1/4 c cheese and the nuts and serve.