Diet

"Uptown" Salmon Salad

I love salmon, and there's this little hole-in-the-wall spot I used to hit up for lunch that served a green leaf salmon salad they called The Uptown. Although the salad was super delish, I noticed that after a while, the chef started skimping on the amount of salmon in the dish, probably to cut down on costs. I therefore decided that instead of paying $10.00 for a salad that mainly consisted of lettuce, I'd make my own, with a heftier serving of salmon. So, here's my recipe for the "Uptown" salmon salad.

To prepare this tasty dish, you'll need:

• A big hunk of juicy salmon (Wild Alaskan from Trader Joe's is my fav)
• Dark green lettuce (I use the Baby Spring Mix from Trader Joe's. Spinach leaves would also work great for this salad. I would stay away from Romaine lettuce just because it has less nutritional value than the darker varieties)
• Mushrooms (optional)
• Olives (optional)
• Cilantro (optional, but this salad ain't the same without it!)
• Hard boiled eggs
  
• Butter flavored cook spray
  
• Olive oil (optional)
• Lemon juice
• Sea salt
• Cracked black pepper
• Paprika
• Capers
• Balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing
  

**Note: I didn't provide any measurements because I just season to taste.

Directions:

1. Spray a baking pan with butter flavored cook spray before placing the salmon inside. I like to rub a little bit of extra virgin olive oil on my salmon prior to seasoning, but this step is not necessary. You will however want to pour some lemon juice on top of the salmon. Don't be shy about it. Pour it on!
2. Next, season the salmon with a dash of sea salt (too much will dry the fish out), and apply some cracked black pepper and paprika. You'll also want to place some capers on top. Be sure to spread them out, as it is really the capers that give the salmon a burst of flavor. Once you have all your seasonings on top, the salmon should look like this:
3. Next, cover the fish with aluminum foil to lock in moisture:
4. Bake the fish on 375* for approx. 20 minutes. While that's cooking, start preparing the salad.
5. Clean the salad leaves with a fruit and vegetable wash. I use this:Be sure to rinse the salad well and dry the leaves using a salad spinner.
6. Throw in your extras (I add mushrooms, olives and cilantro. I also like tomatoes, but didn't have any on hand this time around). Add some salt and pepper to the salad, then toss it with some balsamic vinaigrette dressing (Raspberry vinaigrette is also super delish with this dish):
7. Once the salmon is done, slice it and lay some pieces on top of the salad. You can also add a hard boiled egg for extra protein (which, by the way, is good for your body and hair ;-)). Eat and enjoy!