Salmon, Salmon, Salmon

Several months ago, I discovered individually flash-frozen salmon fillets at Sam's. These fillets are suprisingly good and they are affordable as well. Since my discovery, we've been eating salmon at least once a week (sometimes more). As a result I'm on an endless search for new salmon recipes. I particularly enjoyed this one, from Real Simple magazine. I love roasted onion and fennel, so this recipe is right up my alley. I make some simple roasted potatoes to go along with it. I think the sweet roasted fennel and onion go very well with the salmon and potatoes.

Roasted Fennel and Red Onion Salmon

2 small fennel bulbs, cut into ½-inch wedges
1 large red onion, cut into ½-inch wedges
6 cloves garlic, smashed
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
½ bunch fresh thyme sprigs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 6-ounce salmon fillets, skinned
1 lemon, halved
About 3 cups cooked rice

Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a roasting pan, toss the fennel, onion, garlic, tomatoes, thyme, ½ teaspoon of the salt, ¼ teaspoon of the pepper and the oil. Spread evenly and roast for 20 minutes. Move the vegetables to the side of the pan, add the salmon, then redistribute the vegetables around the salmon.

Squeeze the lemon halves over the salmon. Sprinkle the salmon with the remaining salt and pepper. Return to oven and roast until the salmon is the same color throughout and flakes easily, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve immediately, with the rice, if desired.

Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary

2 pounds small potatoes, baby Yukon gold or red skin potatoes
6 cloves garlic, cracked away from skin
2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, enough to just coat potatoes
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Halve potatoes and place on a cookie sheet. Combine with cracked cloves of garlic. Coat potatoes and garlic with extra-virgin olive oil and season with rosemary, salt and pepper.

Place potatoes on center rack of oven and roast 20 minutes, until just tender.

A slightly different lasagna

Lasagna is one pasta dish that I don't typically order when dining out. I'm kind of picky about my lasagna. I like it with lots of flavor and I really get upset when it's dry. I tried a new recipe for a different take on lasagna. In truth, it's the same basic idea with different pasta. It was really tasty, but I would try a couple of modifications in the future. I used a low carb pasta for the recipe and it worked out pretty well. I didn't notice any difference in flavor, so I think I'll stick with it in the future. I like to use a couple different kinds of meat so next time I will probably use a spicy sausage and hamburger, instead of just hamburger alone. I would also reccomend using about 8-10 ounces more sauce.

Lasagna-style Baked Ziti

1 pound ziti
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 pound lean ground beef
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup chopped fresh oregano (optional)
1 26-ounce jar pasta sauce
½ cup grated Parmesan
1 15-ounce container ricotta cheese
1 10-ounce box frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove liquid
1 cup grated mozzarella

Cook the ziti according to package instructions. Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large pot, over medium-low heat, heat the oil. Add the onion, salt and pepper. Cover and cook until the onion is softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the beef, increase the heat to medium-high and cook until no trace of pink remains, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain any remaining liquid. Add the garlic and oregano and cook for 2 minutes. Add the pasta sauce and heat for 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Add the Parmesan, ricotta and spinach and toss again. Spread the mixture into a 9x13-inch baking dish or individual ramekins and sprinkle with the mozzarella. Bake until the mozzarella melts, about 15 minutes.

Recipe from Real Simple magazine

Chicken and Rice

I’ve always liked the traditional chicken and rice casserole. It’s a kind of comfort food for me. This recipe is very simple and it’s delicious. The braised carrots are a nice accompaniment, balancing the rich flavor of the chicken and rice.


Chicken and Rice Casserole

1 cup uncooked white rice
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 7/8 cups water
1 (1 ounce) package dry onion soup mix
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spread rice in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Rinse chicken and pat dry; arrange chicken pieces on top of rice.

Mix soup and water together and pour over chicken and rice. Sprinkle dry onion soup mix on top. Cover and seal tightly with foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 to 1 ½ hours.


Herb-Braised Carrots

10 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces (or use one bag baby carrots)
1 cup chicken stock
2 stalks rosemary
6 sage leaves, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients except salt and pepper in a saucepan over low heat. Cover and cook until carrots are tender, about 25 minutes. Check for doneness by piercing with a knife or skewer. Discard rosemary stems before serving. Season with salt and pepper to taste.