Have you ever looked at a recipe in a magazine or cookbook and thought it looked amazing? But then you disregarded it because the recipe looked too intimidating. Why? When I was planning my meals for this week I realized that I immediately looked at recipes and was thinking about how to alter them before I had even decided that I wanted to make that recipe this week.
This past weekend I received the latest issue of Cooking Light in the mail. There were so many recipes that I wanted to try! So Sunday night I sat down to plan my dinners for the week. Here is one recipe that I picked (and altered).
Cedar Plank-Grilled Salmon with Mango Kiwi Salsa
Grilling on a cedar plank is on my bucket list, but it's not going to happen this week. Don't be intimidated by cooking methods! I'm making the recipe as is other than I'm grilling my salmon on foil rather than a fancy cedar plank. Last night I put my frozen salmon in the refrigerator to thaw and mixed up the salsa. When I was ready to cook tonight, the meal only ended up taking 15-20 minutes to prepare.
If you don't feel comfortable grilling salmon yet, you can pan fry, bake or broil it. Just because Cooking Light grilled theirs on a cedar plank doesn't mean that you have to also. Grilling on a cedar plank will probably give your salmon more flavor but it certainly wasn't lacking by skipping that step.
When I grill salmon, I put the salmon on top of foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray. I don't usually buy salmon with the skin on so if anything sticks it's going to be the meaty part. I heat the grill on High to about 400 degrees and then put the fish on. I turn the side where the fish is to Low so that it cooks indirectly. I've found that if I leave all the burners on High then my fish gets charred on the bottom. This is especially true if you use any sort of marinade or rub that has sugar in it. The salmon normally cooks for about 15 minutes but it will depend on the thickness of your pieces. I peek into my biggest fillet with a fork to make sure it is cooked all the way.
To go along with my salmon, I made the Mango Kiwi salsa that the original recipe called for. I made it last night because I had the extra time. Salsa always seems to taste better the next day once the flavors have a chance to come together. I used a fresh mango but frozen mango would be a good alternative if fresh mangoes aren't in season. I seeded my serrano chile and the salsa didn't have any heat. I've actually never used a serrano chile before and was expecting it to be really hot! Next time I would either leave the seeds in or use a jalapeno.
I served the salmon over a bed of lettuce from Terri's garden along with farro. If you haven't tried farro then you're missing out! It's a whole grain that is pretty high in protein. It's similar tasting to brown rice but has more texture. You boil and drain it just like pasta and tonight I didn't add anything extra. The hubby always eats his food in order of least favorite to favorite. He's a meat lover but whenever I make farro it's always last on his plate.
Tomorrow night I'm going to make an altered version of Cooking Light's Glazed Chicken and Szechuan Noodle Salad with Sesame Broccoli. Sounds fancy but don't shy away: I'll show you how I altered this recipe!
When I grill salmon, I put the salmon on top of foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray. I don't usually buy salmon with the skin on so if anything sticks it's going to be the meaty part. I heat the grill on High to about 400 degrees and then put the fish on. I turn the side where the fish is to Low so that it cooks indirectly. I've found that if I leave all the burners on High then my fish gets charred on the bottom. This is especially true if you use any sort of marinade or rub that has sugar in it. The salmon normally cooks for about 15 minutes but it will depend on the thickness of your pieces. I peek into my biggest fillet with a fork to make sure it is cooked all the way.
I served the salmon over a bed of lettuce from Terri's garden along with farro. If you haven't tried farro then you're missing out! It's a whole grain that is pretty high in protein. It's similar tasting to brown rice but has more texture. You boil and drain it just like pasta and tonight I didn't add anything extra. The hubby always eats his food in order of least favorite to favorite. He's a meat lover but whenever I make farro it's always last on his plate.
Tomorrow night I'm going to make an altered version of Cooking Light's Glazed Chicken and Szechuan Noodle Salad with Sesame Broccoli. Sounds fancy but don't shy away: I'll show you how I altered this recipe!
Happy Cooking!
Jenny
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