Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Salmon with Beans & Pesto



I have always enjoyed fish.  I love sushi and am a huge fan of steamed lobster, but honestly fish is something I haven't cooked all that much.  Growing up my mom would try pretty hard to keep us from eating meat on Fridays during Lent, we lived off of the fisherman's platters at our local restaurant.  Plus growing up in New England there is a bevy of delicious, fresh and cheap fish options.  I actually can't say why I never went out of my way to cook it myself, especially since I do cook a whole lot (in case you hadn't already figured that out). Maybe it's because the Boy is a meatatarian, a term coined by Wendy's commercials, maybe it's because I just don't have too much confidence in cooking it.  Who knows?

Since committing myself to a year of No ReEATING I've been trying to tackle those things that I never cooked very much before.  And as you already know fish is one of those things.  Luckily my meatatarian  hubs is on board with my trying to work more fish into our diet.  It's so good for you and adds so many options for dinners, something that's especially necessary this year.  As I was thumbing through one of my new favorite cookbooks, Jamie's Food Revolution I happened upon the chapter for quick cooking meat and fish.  Now don't get me wrong I love a good slow cooked pork shoulder or some short ribs, delicious, rich and homey it doesn't get much better.  But I just don't have the time to always cook that way, nor is it good for my waistline.  So quick cooking sounded good to me and so did fish since we hadn't had it in a few weeks.  I figure if anyone can help build my confidence with cooking fish it's Jamie Oliver, the king of teaching everyone to cook.  This recipe for salmon baked in foil with pesto jumped out since I love pesto on just about anything and I knew I had it in the fridge.  Plus cooking in any kind of a pouch is a win in my book since it means an easy clean-up.  This recipe took it one step further by cooking the beans along with it, making for an easy one pouch meal.


Salmon Baked in a Foil Parcel with Green Beans and Pesto
from Jamie's Food Revolution by Jamie Oliver
serves 2
printable recipe


2 handfuls of green beans - washed and trimmed
2 lemons
2 7 oz salmon fillets, skin on
2 heaping Tbsps basil pesto
olive oil
sea salt & fresh ground black pepper

1. Preheat your oven to 400F. Pull out 2 good size pieces of aluminum foil.  Place a handful of beans in the center of each piece of foil.  Lay the salmon, skin-side down, on top of the beans.  Place a heaping Tbsp of pesto on top of each fillet and squeeze half a lemon over each. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper.  Fold up the edges of the foil and crimp to close.
2. Place the foil pouches on a baking sheet and into the heated oven.  Cook for 15 minutes.  Remove from the oven let sit for a minute or two before checking to see if the salmon is cooked through.  If not, fold up the foil and place back in the oven for a few more minutes.
3.  To serve either place the pouches on individual plates or remove from foil and place on plates.  Give another squeeze of half a lemon before eating.

I loved this dish, and have to say I'm a bit bummed that I can't make it again until next year. The boy gobbled it right up too, something I didn't expect.  Paired with a green salad and it was a ridiculously simple weeknight meal.  From prep to table in under 30 minutes, you can't beat that in my book.


The pup even liked the pics of this one, or she may have been trying to get me to pay attention to hee by laying on the cooking as I was typing from it.

Enjoy!

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