I know what you might be thinking. Do we need another salmon recipe?
Well I promise you, if you try this one you will be answering that question in the affirmative.
Before I tell you about it though, I do want to mention that a few of my friends have sent me other tried and true salmon recipes of theirs that they really enjoy including Virginia’s Ginger Basil Salmon in Foil that I did make last summer and it was yummy. And my friend Sally A sent me her Quick Salmon Piccata that I have yet to try, but you can picatta anything and we are guaranteed to love it in our family. In fact, when one of my daughters decided to become a vegetarian, she also decided the usual chicken picatta she loved at a nearby restaurant that came with a side of pasta was going to survive as simply a pasta picatta which the restaurant was happy to oblige. She now recreates this dish at home on occasion which makes for a quick and easy dinner.
Anyway, the recipe I am sharing today is one I made over the weekend while my husband was out of town and a beautiful piece of salmon was in my fridge begging for attention. I should mention that the last time I prepared salmon for the hubs, which isn’t his favorite fish to begin with, it was an epic fail. Failure with a capital F. The recipe was this one and I think it was the texture of the steamed salmon that was the problem so live and learn. He really loves it best if we grill it with a delicious marinade.
Today’s recipe comes from an Instagram account that I love to follow, Diane Morrisey. She just uses her Iphone, no website and offers all the recipes she creates or tries from other creators in the comments. Kind of like me! All of her recipes look delicious and while some are healthy, there are lots of indulgent dishes as well which makes her so relatable!
She posted this Pistachio Salmon recently that was inspired by a recipe she found on Something Nutritious. The original recipe called for coating filets of salmon in a mixture of dijon mustard, olive oil, garlic, lemon and honey, topping them with chopped pistachios and then baking until cooked to your liking. Diane took it up a notch by converting the plain honey to hot honey which is all the rage right now. She provided a recipe for making it at home which I did (super easy), but I am pretty sure Trader Joe’s has its own version as well. Her hot honey combines honey, chili flakes, some hot sauce and apple cider vinegar that you just heat and steep for about 5 minutes. It stores on the counter and can be drizzled on almost anything.
Diane’s recipe also adds some chili flakes to the dijon-honey mixture, although I chose to omit them, not knowing how spicy the honey would make the finished dish. I think if you like spice, keep it in!
The only other change I made to Diane’s recipe was to cover the fish lightly with foil after cooking it for 15 minutes because I wanted to make sure it was cooked through, and didn’t want the pistachios to burn so just keep an eye on that. Otherwise the recipe worked really well, and most importantly was really delicious! That touch of sweetness from the honey really complements the salmon, and you can choose to add extra at the end as Diane’s recipe suggests or taste and decide if the salmon is sweet enough for your palate (I did not add more honey because I don’t like things overly sweet). There is some zing from the dijon mustard and the creamy, buttery pistachios provide a nice texture as well.
If you are anything like me, you are looking for new ways to bring life to the dinner table after two years of recipes on repeat so be sure to give this one a go if you are a salmon lover!
Until next time…
One Year Ago: Chili-Lime Salmon with Avocado Ranch Dressing
Two Years Ago: Armchair Travel to Italy
Three Years Ago: Cherry Tomato and Eggplant Curry
Four Years Ago: Quinoa “Risotto” with Shrimp and Asparagus
Five Years Ago: Slow Cooker Chicken Marbella
Six Years Ago: Turkey Larb Lettuce Cups
Seven Years Ago: Moon Pies & Chocolate Dipped Graham Cracker Cookies
Eight Years Ago: Truffled Ricotta Dip
Recipe is modified ever so slightly from Diane Morrisey.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds salmon
- 2 Tablespoons dijon mustard
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 2 Tablespoons hot honey, divided (store bought or recipe below)
- 2 cloves grated garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes, optional
- 1/3 cup chopped pistachios
- salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 Tablespoon red chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Place the salmon on the baking sheet and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, combine the dijon, olive oil, zest and juice, 1 Tablespoon hot honey (see instructions below) and chili flakes is using.
- Spread the mixture evenly over the salmon being sure to coat it including the sides if possible. Top with the pistachios.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until done to your liking. I cooked mine for 20 and covered the top loosley with foil after 15 to prevent the pistachios from getting too brown.
- Remove from the oven and if you'd like, drizzle with the extra Tablespoon of hot honey. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve with extra lemon on the side.
- Add the honey and chili flakes to a small pot over medium heat. Gently heat the honey (you are just trying to get it to a more liquid state) just until you see small bubbles along the side of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the honey to steep for 5 minutes. Add the hot sauce and vinegar and stir.
- At this point you can store it as is, or if you want the honey to be milder then you can strain. If you are using right away you may want to keep the chili flakes in and then strain for future uses.
- Enjoy!
I did need another salmon recipe!! This is now on the menu for next week 🙂
“you can piccata anything” 😂