walnut and basil-crusted salmon

Happy St. Patrick's Day! In honor of the holiday and the color green, I'm sharing a new salmon recipe of mine. I tried this for the first time a few weeks ago on top of whole wheat penne pasta, and I planned to recreate it again (while taking exact measurements) for the holiday. I'm not a corned-beef-and-cabbage type of gal; this mostly fresh-water fish is more up my alley. If you like pesto and salmon, then this dish is for you!

​Nut-crusting protein is a new favorite of mine. I recently started doing with chicken, and I think it's a great alternative to using bread crumbs. The nuts pack on additional healthy fats and protein. Plus, it's easy to do. I would try this with other types of fish. I've never done this with vegetarian foods, such as  veggies or tofu, but I'm sure it would be good. If you can bread something, I'm sure you can nut-crust it too. At least, I hope so!

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This recipe requires very few ingredients. The honey will give it a hint of sweetness. You can omit it, and it will still taste good without it. Like most salmon recipes, you can make this in under 20 minutes. 

Instead of pasta last night, I recreated the dish with a side of cucumber salad (prepared while my salmon was in the oven). I'll post that simple recipe below, too. 

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Walnut Basil-Crusted Salmon  
(serves 2 or serves 1 and  makes great leftovers for the next day)

Ingredients

• 2x 3-5 oz salmon fillets (with or without skin)
• 1 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup graded Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp honey (optional, for additional sweetness)
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray  or spread olive or coconut oil on foil to avoid fish from sticking.
2. Put basil, walnuts, cheese, and honey into food processor. Blend until ingredients are ground and well-mixed together (about 5-10 seconds). 
3. Lightly sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper on each side. Place salmon with skin side-down onto foil (if your salmon has skin). 
4. Using a spoon, equally spread the walnut mixture onto the tops of the salmon fillets (see picture). Form an even layer. 
5. Place salmon in the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes or until done. 

Cucumber and Tomato Salad

Ingredients

• 1 large cucumber, chopped
• 10 oz. (or about 1.5 cups) grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup chopped white onion
• 3 large fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 3 T olive oil (I used herb-infused olive oil with this recipe)
• salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients and enjoy!