Home ยป Mediterranean Salmon Salad + Weekly Menu

Mediterranean Salmon Salad + Weekly Menu

MediterraneanSalmonSalad1

Yesterday was the first Saturday I have thoroughly enjoyed in…too long.

I slept in until…almost 8am. Lily and I played soccer in the backyard. Mr. Prevention and I had breakfast and coffee and ventured out to run errands and grocery shop together. I nearly escaped with nothing added to my cart that wasn’t on the list and when I ran back to get quinoa, he took the cart and loaded up on Powerade. Zero. He loves the stuff.

Still, our grocery bill was only $69 for the week. I was pleased!

MediterraneanSalmonSalad2

I came home and made this salad. I loved this salad.

I knew from the second I saw it on Estela’s blog that this was a salad made for me.

I love salads, but a meal of lettuce alone doesn’t sustain me. And most people have the connotation of healthy and “diets” = salads. Boring, flavorless salads. Bleck. This salad packs lots of nutrition — omega 3’s, fiber, vitamin C, you name it. And it’s filling…because it’s not just lettuce. And I feel satisfied because it’s not just lettuce. But it doesn’t skimp on flavor…TONS of flavor. It was incredible. I haven’t enjoyed a salad this much in far too long.

MediterraneanSalmonSalad3

After lunch, I did some blog photography before pounding out a quick (for me) 5K in 30:08. It felt awesome. I should probably knock on wood, but my ankle is feeling back to 100%.

I got ready and met Donna for martinis and appetizers. How two women can jabber on for 3 1/2 hours and it feels like 30 minutes…it always happens. I had promised Mr. Prevention deep dish pizza, so I came home to start that. While the dough did its thing….twice…we caught up with the DVR and watched some Discovery channel. Nerd alert.

A night in was just what I needed. And the pizza, it wasn’t too shabby either. 😉

MediterraneanSalmonSalad4 [print_this]

Mediterranean Salmon Salad

Dressing:
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp Dijon mustard

Salad:
3/4 lb salmon filet
pinch of salt
pinch of black pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 cup dry orzo
1/4 cup kalamata olives, halved
1 red bell peppers, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 cup (2 oz) crumbled feta
1 14oz can artichoke hearts (quartered)
5 cups spring mix, lightly packed
Dressing (see above)

Directions:

Whisk all ingredients together for the dressing, set aside.

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Place salmon on a baking sheet lined with foil and sprayed with olive oil. Sprinkle salmon with salt, pepper, & oregano.  Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until center is cooked.

Meanwhile, cook orzo according to package directions.

Drain pasta and place in a deep casserole dish.  Pour 1/4 cup of dressing over pasta and gently toss. To the orzo, add olives, red bell peppers, red onions, feta, artichoke hearts, spring mix lettuce, and the remaining dressing.  Toss to gently combine all ingredients.

Once salmon is cooked, flake salmon using two forks. Top salad with flaked salmon.

Yield: 5 servings (1 cup of lettuces with about 1 cup orzo/veggie mix)

Nutrition Information (per serving): 500 calories; 24.6 g. fat; 48 mg. cholesterol; 614 mg. sodium; 45 g. carbohydrate; 5.4 g. fiber; 25 g. protein

Result: This was my kind of salad! So flavor, full of different textures, and not JUST lettuce. Hands down one of my favorite salads. I didn’t use all the dressing that the original recipe called for, so I adjusted the recipe posted here accordingly. I loved the salmon with the feta and olive balanced out by the spring greens. Unique and delicious…healthy, too!

[/print_this]

Weekly Menu: April 28th – May 3rd

Other than grading…today has no plans! 😀

Be well,

Share With Your Friends!

20 Comments

  1. Alyssa
    April 29, 2012 / 7:13 am

    this is my kind of salad! Lo love all of the flavors and textures. I think that’s what a good salad ought to be. Glad you enjoyed your weekend!

  2. Melinda
    April 29, 2012 / 7:26 am

    This salad looks amazing! I just ate dinner and I am stuffed, but looking at this makes me hungry!

  3. Annie @ What's Annie Making
    April 29, 2012 / 9:27 am

    Oooh this looks really good. I love the salmon artichoke combination. And the dressing sounds divine too! Thanks for sharing.

  4. Nish
    April 29, 2012 / 9:58 am

    Beautiful salad! Love all the ingredients that have gone into this dish! Bookmarked this recipe as I have to try it asap ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. Grace@ FoodFitnessFreshair
    April 29, 2012 / 11:46 am

    That salad looks amazing!! And nothing like a good Saturday. I’m about to venture out for hopefully a great Sunday. Hope yours is wonderful as well!

  6. mjskit
    April 29, 2012 / 7:21 pm

    I can certainly understand why you enjoyed this salad! It looks delicious!!!! It has some real depth of flavors and lots of wonderful textures! Great salad!

  7. Kristen (swanky dietitian)
    April 29, 2012 / 7:48 pm

    I agree! I hate boring salads. This salad looks full of flavor! YUM!
    I have yet to do my grocery shopping so I may just have to put these toppings on my list.

  8. Erika - The Teenage Taste
    April 29, 2012 / 8:54 pm

    Can I come over for dinner, Nicole? Seriously, this salad AND deep-dish pizza for a weeknight dinner – normally I just order take-out on the weekends! Anyways, this salad looks delicious! I love that you added artichokes – I’m obsessed! ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. Estela @ Weekly bite
    April 29, 2012 / 10:37 pm

    I am so glad you loved the salad!! We actually had it for dinner tonight ๐Ÿ™‚

    • Nicole, RD
      Author
      April 29, 2012 / 10:39 pm

      Adored it! Can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow for lunch! I was going to comment on your blog, but it still won’t let me leave comments ๐Ÿ™

  10. Kate
    April 30, 2012 / 12:31 am

    Your morning started out like our typical Sundays…with less sleeping in!

  11. Gina (The Candid RD)
    April 30, 2012 / 7:15 am

    Pinned it!! YUM!! If only Nick would eat salmon, I think I’d make this every night.
    And ummm..I catch Nick watching the Discovery Channel and/or the History channel ALL THE TIME. Actually I love the discovery channel lately because they’ve been playing those Earth movies…I forget what they are called, Planet Earth maybe? They are so entertaining!!
    Have a wonderful week Nicole!

  12. Dianne
    April 30, 2012 / 7:19 am

    YUM! I have to drive to the city and get some salmon right away!! I can’t wait to make this salad. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Nicole, I wanted to tell you my granddaughter ran a half marathon at U of I on Saturday. ๐Ÿ™‚

  13. Pingback: Sydlandsk laksesalat………..
  14. Pingback: 30 Days of Food Inspiration – Day 7 « Eat.Drink.Life.Love.
  15. Pingback: Salads
  16. Bridget
    July 10, 2012 / 10:53 am

    Nicole, this was out of this world! Obviously I thought it was good or I wouldn’t have made it, but I wasn’t expecting it to blow my socks off!

    • Nicole, RD
      Author
      July 12, 2012 / 6:59 am

      Yay! I’m so glad you loved it! Especially since I KNOW you have killer taste in food ๐Ÿ˜‰

  17. Pingback: Mediterranean Salmon Salad | Delights from Rae
  18. Pingback: www.preventionrd .... - Recettes plat principal, idรฉes faciles & dรฉlicieuses

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get my newest recipes
Follow Me