Seared Salmon on a Bed of Lemon Feta Quinoa

After a one and a half hour drive home I arrived to a beautifully cooked dinner by my hubby. I know --lucky girl. And what was even better, it was DELICIOUS. But...there is always a but...I don't take kindly to my sous chef trying to climb the ranks to head chef. That's my territory! So I got a little competitive.

Enter: my daydreamed dinner. People might dream of the beach, I dream of what to cook next. This meal needed to be more delicious than the last.

Ingredients:
Salmon
Lemon
1/4 cup Baby Zucchini
3 Tbsp Red Onion
3 Tbsp Red Pepper
1 Garlic Clove
1 cup Non-fat Yogurt (or whatever plain yogurt you have on hand)
Fresh or Dried Dill
1/2 cup White Quinoa
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
White Pepper
2 oz Feta
Fresh Parsley

After that list...do you still want to make it? :) And as always, these measurements aren't exact science because I just don't measure.

1. Rise (well) your quinoa to remove the bitterness. You can also soak it, but it's not necessary. Put it in a pot over medium heat with a cup of water, pinch of salt, and half the garlic clove. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook covered for 15 minutes.

2. While your quinoa is cooking it's time to chop your onion, peppers, and zucchini. Chop it fairly small...think about a chunky salsa. Heat up a stainless steel pan to medium-low a little closer to the low side if you have a gas stove. Add about a teaspoon or two of extra virgin olive oil so that it will lightly coat the veggies. When you start to see color on your zucchini, add the other half of your garlic clove, but make sure that it is minced. You want to get your veggies soft, but not mushy. They need to hold their shape.

3. If you're a superstar, while all of that is on the stove, go ahead with your yogurt sauce. This one is simple. Grab a bowl, toss in your yogurt, add a TON of dill (so it makes your sauce look almost green), add a dash of white pepper, and a little more than a dash of garlic powder, and finish with a good squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

4. Your quinoa should now be cooked. Remove from heat and set aside still covered for 5 minutes. Take your veggies out of the pan too and put them in a bowl. Set aside.

5. Take the same stainless steel pan and heat it up -- this time to medium (gas) or medium-high heat (electric). Add in your olive oil (not extra virgin!!! we need a higher smoke temp). Salt and pepper the rinsed and patted dry salmon. I used coarsely ground pink himalayan salt from TJs and coarsely ground pepper. When your oil is shimmering, put your fish down flesh first. Cook until the fish releases naturally, then flip to the skin side to finish. When you take it out of the pan, let it cool slightly and the skin should be crisp and peel right off.

6. Remove the garlic clove from your quinoa and fluff it. Add some ground black pepper, lemon, feta, and fresh chopped parsley.

7. Time to plate! Put a dollop of your yogurt on the plate and swirl with a spoon until you get a nice circle. Add a mound of quinoa, gently place your salmon on top, and spoon over your "salsa."

Easy Dinners

Weekdays get crazy, we come home tired, and just want to do something simple. Well that doesn't mean that you can't have something delicious and nutritious!

Here a couple of easy ideas:

Tofu Tacos

Cube up some tofu and toss it in cornstarch, garlic powder, and ginger powder.

Fry it in the wok (not deep fry) with just enough oil to make it golden brown.

Slice up some green cabbage.

Spread some hoison on a tortilla, lay down the cabbage and tofu and you are good to go!

Lazy Lady's Lasagna

Cook some whole wheat penne, then toss it with your favorite red sauce and a vegetable like peas or spinach. Those are vegetables I always keep on hand in my freezer for quick meals.

Brown up some ground beef or use a vegetarian substitute.

Mix together some part skim ricotta and pesto.

Now time to layer: spread some sauce on the bottom of a baking dish, layer some pasta/vegetable, layer the ricotta/pesto, layer the meat, layer the rest of the pasta, and top with shredded mozzarella.

Put under the broiler  to melt and slightly brown.

Pretzel Crusted Chicken Salad

Put some pretzels in the food processor and grind until you get small bits.

Mix together some whole grain mustard, dijon mustard, a little red wine vinegar and oil.

Dredge the chicken breast in the mustard sauce, then dip in the pretzels. 

Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 mins, flipping once.

Slice up the chicken and serve over a salad. Keeping with the theme you can use honey mustard dressing.

Simple Salmon

Clean and pat dry a piece of salmon.

In a bowl, mix together 1/3 cup yogurt, 2 tbsp light mayo, juice from half a lemon, lots of dill (dried or fresh), a dash of white pepper, and a clove of garlic (you could also sub garlic powder).

Spread the yogurt mixture on the salmon and cook at 375 until the fish flakes.

While your salmon cooks you can saute some baby spinach in olive oil with some salt, pepper, and a finishing squeeze of lemon. Do the lemon after you take the spinach off of the heat.

Throw in a bag of 3 minute microwavable brown rice from Trader Joes and enjoy!

Notice that these posts weren't that specific (I mean even more so than I usually am). That's because following a recipe slows you down. You have to get into that groove in the kitchen. Taste as you go along and trust yourself. 

Cooking isn't about being in your head. You can get in there, spend some time with your family and let the stress of the day melt away. The worst that can happen by taking the recipe training wheels off is that you learn. And maybe have to order chinese delivery if your meal really is that bad.