Lemon Dill Salmon with Photo How-To!

Those who know me are aware of my huge dislike for seafood!  It was not until age 35 that I even presented myself with a regular serving of salmon or any seafood!  I would cook various recipes for my husband and kids and would eat a bowl of cereal myself.  I would force myself to try a tiny bit of the seafood and well... ick!  I just couldn't do a second bite!  This past September we made a switch to "clean eating" and I decided to get creative with salmon.  I thought of the fact that I really do not care much for chicken and how fresh lemon has always been my go-to in masking that chicken-y flavor.  So why not give it a try with salmon?  Success!!  I have now made this recipe many times and it is truly a family favorite.  And oddly enough, a personal favorite of mine as well!  Tonight I made it a point to jot down what I was doing each step and also took some photos.  Here we go!

Lemon Dill Salmon with Oven-Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients:

4 Filets of Atlantic Salmon (thawed)
1 Tablespoon of Melted Butter (optional, but I do like the crispy finish on the salmon!)
2 Lemons, Zested and Juiced 
Fresh Dill, 1/2 to 3/4 Cup
Sprinkle of Sea Salt and Ground Pepper

Heat oven to 375 and line baking pan with foil.  Later, you will be SOOO glad that you took this step!

1) Arrange salmon filets on foil-covered baking pan.  Prepare all ingredients by melting a small tablespoon of butter, tearing off sprigs of dill, using a micro-plane or zester to zest your lemons and then cut lemons in half and juice thoroughly.  You are hoping to wind up with 3/4 - 1 cup of fresh lemon juice.    

 

2) Do the following:

        1: Lightly sprinkle the salmon with ground sea salt and pepper. 

        2: Use a basting brush to barely coat the top of each filet with melted butter.

        3: Gently arrange bits of lemon zest on top of the filets.

        4: Slowly spoon lemon juice over each piece of salmon.  

                          ** Reserve 1/2 of your juice!!

        5: Place sprigs of dill on top of each filet.  ** Reserve 1/2 of your dill!!

3) Now you are ready for the oven!  Place your baking pan onto a central rack on your oven which has been preheated to 375.  Bake for approximately 25 minutes, but keep an eye on your dinner!  At this point I turn the oven setting to a "low broil" but do not move the pan.  Keep everything in the oven for an additional 5 minutes as the oven temperature raises.  For the final 5-6 minutes, move your oven rack up a notch, but still hopefully a notch (or even two!) below the highest level.  KEEP AN EYE on the salmon!  My personal preference is to have it crisp up a bit, as you will see in the photo below.  You may prefer to take your salmon out of the oven a bit sooner?

 4) I like to serve this meal with plain rice and a roasted veggie of some sort!  I will include below my super-easy and delicious approach to oven-roasted broccoli and cauliflower.  When plating the food, I begin by placing the rice and veggies on the plate.  Then top the rice with the salmon.  I add fresh dill and slowly pour a generous amount of the reserved fresh lemon juice over the salmon.  This trickles down through the plain rice and everything is now so flavorful and is ready to serve!!


Super-Simple Approach to Oven Roasted Veggies

This is a current favorite way to enjoy all sorts of veggies!  Tonight I happened to be working with broccoli and cauliflower.  They went into the oven about 10 minutes after the salmon had begun and came out as I was moving the rack up a notch for the final 5-6 minutes as the salmon finished on broil.

Ingredients:

3-5 Cups Fresh Veggies
1-3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
Light Sprinkle of Sea Salt and Ground Pepper

Heat oven to 375.  I love to make these veggies on my stoneware "large bar pan".  
1) Arrange veggies on your pan.  I would have liked to have a bit more broccoli and cauliflower to work with today.  But the kids had eaten more than I realized during a snack earlier today.  Oh well!  At least they are enthusiastic about their raw veggies!

2) Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of ground pepper and a conservative dash of sea salt.  Use a spatula to toss the ingredients together on the pan to lightly coat your veggies.  Now you are ready for the oven!  

3) Place pan into your preheated 375 oven.  Bake for approximately 20 minutes on a center rack.  Pull your pan out and give the veggies a bit of a flip in order to better coat each side.  Place pan back into oven and you may want to move the rack up a notch or increase temp to 450.  Bake for an additional 3-6 minutes and keep an eye on your veggies.  Brown them as desired.  We really enjoy the slightly crisp and caramelized variation that occurs throughout the batch.