Recently, I have been on a salmon kick and have been cooking it up a few times a week for lunch. I don't know if it is the warmer weather that is on it's way or that my body is starting to crave it as well as lighter meals more, but I don't mind it! We all know that salmon is high in Omega 3 fatty acids, can help lower inflammation, is a great source of protein, and you don't need to wait until summer to roll out to put it on the grill! It tastes just as delicious baking it in the oven or searing it on the stove top! 

If you've been a long time follower of my blog or new, you know that I have one of the worst digestive systems out there! Unlike meat, salmon has been one of the easier protein sources for my body to break down and keep me full for hours without making me feel completely weighed down. Adding salmon into my diet has been extremely beneficial to my digestive system and the Omega 3's in salmon have been proven to help fight inflammation in the digestive tract and heal damaged digestive tracts. Incorporating salmon back into my routine just a few times a week seems to have brought some relief! It is also great for you skin, can help you sleep better at night low in mercury, and I always choose wild caught salmon versus farmed due to the antibiotics that are used in farmed raised fish. 

Anyways, back to this recipe! This was so simple, yet extremely flavorful despite the minimal ingredients that I used. Normally, I have been adding my usual spices to my salmon, such as this recipe, for my turmeric salmon & basil avocado zucchini noodles, but I wanted to add a little something to the salmon, to give it a little more texture. I didn't want to bread the entire fish, masking the entire fish beneath a pile of bread crumbs, but just give it a crunch on every bite. I had a few pecans in my kitchen and decided to use those because they have such a buttery, maple, sweet taste to me and I thought they would be the best nut to use for the crust.  I added them to my food processor along with some fresh parsley, sea salt, and pepper- that's it. Rubbed the salmon with a little lemon and coconut oil and firmly pressed the crust mixture on top of the salmon and baked it in the oven for less than 15 minutes and then under the broiler for 2 extra minutes. How easy was that? The salmon tasted so refreshing from the fresh herbs and lemon flavor, was a little salty, buttery, and obviously nutty from the pecans and really just made the salmon taste that much better. I usually like to pair this with zucchini noodles, with arugula, coconut rice, or just a big bowl of vegetables and avocado! 

Ingredients:
Serves 2
prep time: 5 minutes
total time: 25 minutes

Salmon
3/4 - 1 pd wild salmon
coconut oil
1/2 lemon

Pecan crust
1/2 cup pecans, crushed
1/2 cup parsley
few pinches of sea salt
few pinches of pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Place the salmon on the parchment paper. Lightly coat the salmon with coconut oil and squeeze lemon on each.

3. For the crust, add the pecans, parsley, sea salt, pepper, and garlic to your food processor and grind until fine. 

4. Place the pecan mixture on top of the salmon and press down firmly. 

5. Bake in the oven on the bottom rack at 400 degrees for 12-14 minutes. Once the salmon is finished cooking (flakes with fork), place the salmon under the broiler for 2 minutes on high to give the crust an added crispy texture. 

Serve immediately. 

Notes:

1. Any nuts will work. 

2. The timing of how long the fish is to be cooked with depend on the thickness & size of your fish. You want the fish to flake off your fork, you will not need a knife to cut the salmon. 

3. Store left over salmon in an airtight container in fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat salmon in the oven or under the broiler for a few minutes on high. 

Below: Arugula, chopped romaine, zucchini rice (grate zucchini and cook in coconut oil for a few minutes on medium heat until tender), avocado, hemp hearts, and salmon.