Today is the start of the NCAA basketball tourney. Time for March Madness! I’m really not much of a basketball fan, but the tourney is a little different. It’s fun to root for the under dog and see what happens on the road to the Sweet Sixteen and the Final Four. After all the hoopala, the top seeds usually end up on top. The big schools get the best players and there is a reason they are rated as the best. We shall see if there are some big surprises this year. I’m watching.
MaryJo was gone most of the day today. This morning was the Coffee Klatch meeting were the Park news is discussed. She always goes to keep in touch. Then she was off to have a pontoon boat ride on Tarpon Lake with the ladies she rides bike with. Then lunch at The Tarpon Turtle restaurant. She was gone until about 3:30. That’s okay. I was watching basketball.
Before I got too involved with the games, I made a trip to the store and picked up some salmon and asparagus. Tonight I was going to make a one pan meal of baked salmon and vegetables. Something super easy that involves simple preparation and little cleanup. This meal was all of the above.
The salmon is a nice thick, skinned filet, about 5 or 6 ounces. A thicker piece works best when you bake the fish. The asparagus takes a full 20 to 25 minutes to get tender and a thinner piece of fish could get overdone and be a little tough. This was really moist and tender and was baked for exactly 25 minutes.
The preparation time for this was about 10 minutes. Pop it into a pre-heated 350 degree oven and set your timer for 25 minutes.
While you wait for the fish and vegetables to get done, make up some gremolata. Gremolata is a herb condiment that you can put on your meat. It is made with garlic, parsley and lemon zest. Sometimes you may want to mix in some olive oil too. The recipe that I saw added some chopped pistachios. This is a nice flavor enhancement to the fish.
Try this dish next time you feel pressed for time and want something easy and good. The salmon was really moist and perfectly cooked. The asparagus was tender but not over done.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 2 skinless salmon filets , about 6 oz. ea.
- 1 pound fresh asparagus
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt and black pepper
- 1 medium onion , sliced, (red onion or yellow onion)
- 1/2 to 1 cup grape tomatoes , halved
- 1 lemon , sliced, (I also put zest from this lemon on the salmon prior to baking)
Gremolata
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup chopped pistachios
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 Degrees
- Spray a 9 x 12 inch baking sheet with cooking oil
- Prep the asparagus by breaking off the ends
- Lay asparagus in the sheet pan and coat with olive oil, salt and pepper
- Lay salmon on top of the asparagus and add a little more salt and pepper
- Add the onion, lemon and tomatoes
- Bake for 25 minutes
- Mix ingredients for the Gremolata in a small bowl and serve over the salmon and asparagus
I had such a great day; first a boat cruise and lunch with friends at a waterfront restaurant, then I came home to find that Joe was making this for dinner. Life is good! Gremolata (just the classic version of garlic, parsley, and lemon zest) adds incredible flavor to vegetables, meats, and fish.