I’ve been in a cooking rut lately.  I think ever since we returned from Italy, I just haven’t felt inspired to cook.  To be honest, I haven’t felt inspired to do much of anything, but that’s another topic for another day!

I’ve mentioned before that my husband has some digestive issues that have forced him to limit his diet by restricting gluten, dairy, and corn products, so I am somewhat limited in preparing meals for us.  Now the good thing is, this isn’t a life or death situation, so if he is craving some good spaghetti or a piece of pizza, well the rules go out the window.  For the most part, however, we try to adhere to his diet as much as possible.

We usually have fish at least once, if not twice, per week, so I try to mix it up when it comes to type of fish and preparation.  This week, I picked up some wild caught salmon and was flipping through Pinterest to get some inspiration.  I saw a pin for avocado salmon bowls and thought that sounded good.  I switched it up from the original pin, however, by using another recipe I found for an “All Green No-Lettuce Salad” of cucumbers and snap peas that I found on healthfullyeverafter.co instead of just the avocado topping that the original recipe used.  This way we were getting some veggies in addition to the avocado, which add a nice crunch as well as a variety of flavors.

I made a couple minor changes to the original All Green No-Lettuce Salad recipe:  I didn’t have any fresh dill on hand, so I used basil because it goes nicely with the mint that the recipe called for.  I also added some torn baby spinach to the salad which I thought rounded it out nicely.  I cooked the salmon in the oven, which I never do (I usually sear it on the stove) and seasoned it with a little lemon juice, honey, and finely chopped fresh basil and mint, as well as a little salt before baking it in a 425 degree oven for 12 minutes.

To serve, I put some jasmine rice that had been seasoned with lemon juice, basil, and honey in the bottom of a bowl, then topped each bowl with a piece of salmon and a generous scoop of the salad.  It was delicious, and such a nice, fresh meal to ring in spring.

Avocado Salmon Bowls with Super Green Salad

Salad:
2 cups sugar snap peas, cut in half with any stringy tips removed
1 stalk of celery, thinly sliced
1 cup diced English cucumber
1 avocado, diced

Baby spinach leaves, torn
Juice from half a lemon
½ teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Salt and pepper to taste

Toss the peas, celery, and cucumber together in a large bowl.  Drizzle the lemon juice and sesame oil over the veggies and toss to coat. Gently fold in the avocado, careful not to mush the avocado pieces.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Chill until ready to serve.

Rice:
3 cups cooked jasmine or basmati rice
juice of ½ a lemon
1 ½ Tablespoons minced fresh basil and mint
1 tablespoon honey
½ teaspoon salt

Allow the cooked rice to cool to room temperature.  Heat the lemon juice on the stove or in the microwave just until warm.  Add the money and salt, stirring until dissolved. Drizzle over the rice and gently fold in, sprinkling with the fresh herbs.  Be careful to not over-stir or the rice will get mushy.

Salmon:
1 lb of salmon filets, with the skin on
olive oil
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon of honey
1 ½ Tablespoons of minced fresh basil and mint
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and coat with a light drizzle of olive oil. Place the fish skin side down on the parchment paper.  Season the fish with salt and pepper.  Mix the lemon juice, honey, and herbs in a small dish and brush onto fish with a basting brush.  Bake for 12 minutes or until it reaches the desired level of doneness.

Assemble the Bowls

When the fish is done, place a serving of the seasoned rice in the bottom of each bowl.  Top with a fish fillet, and then a generous scoop of the salad.  Enjoy!