Parmesan Crusted Salmon

"I'M HAVING FISH TONIGHT!" 

-Bruce from Finding Nemo

My boyfriend, John, and I stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest a few months back and made it at school. It was SO easy and SO yummy--we had two salmon filets each and were both wishing we could have one more! Tonight I made this salmon dish for my mom and and she loved it, too. I recommend serving this dish with veggies and pairing it with a dry white wine. 

Tonight my mom and I had brussel sprouts with the salmon, which we drizzled with some olive oil, and sprinkled with a little bit of salt and pepper. We also ate a mixed greens salad which we picked right from our garden!! We topped the greens with walnuts and dried cranberries, and made a homemade dressing to go along with it which I've also included the recipe for below. Just a general pointer--if you like to cook, it really helps to have a small veggie garden and/or herb garden. I have used greens from my veggie garden 3 times in the past 5 days while cooking, and there's something so special and peaceful about tending to a garden that you can only understand if you grow one of your own. 

Parmesan Crusted Salmon:

-2 salmon filets (I prefer to buy wild caught salmon as opposed to farmed; farmed means the fish were raised on land in tanks JUST so that we humans could eat them)

-1 cup Parmesan cheese

-1/2 a lemon

-extra virgin olive oil to coat the bottom of a 8x8" baking pan

-sprinkle of salt, pepper, and garlic powder

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 F.

2. Lightly coat the bottom of the 8x8" baking pan with olive oil (don't go overboard...4 tablespoons should be good).

3. Cut your lemon in half and squeeze the juice from half of the lemon into the pan with the oil. Add a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and garlic powder to this lemon and oil mixture.

4. Dip both sides of the salmon in the lemon and oil mixture, and then press one side of the salmon into a bowl containing the cheese. Repeat for the other filet, and then return both filets to the baking pan, cheese side up.

5. Bake for 12 minutes, then broil for about 3 minutes or until the Parmesan cheese begins to brown in some spots. Eat every last bite! :)

Simple Salad Dressing:

-2 parts balsamic vinegar

-1 part extra virgin olive oil

-4-5 fresh, minced basil leaves (again, I picked these from my herb garden, and herb gardens can be as simple as a large planter filled with 2-3 different types of herbs)

-1-2 tablespoons of grated yellow onion

Directions: 

1. Whisk the above ingredients together for at least a minute, and either use immediately on a salad, or store in a mason jar in the fridge. Shake before each use. 

Nothing like a simple meal on a lazy Monday! Happy eating! :)