Everyone keeps asking me, “Did you give up anything for Lent this year?” It reminds me of when I was a kid and my brothers and I would tell our parents that we were going to give up homework for Lent. Unfortunately, it never worked out.
I wasn’t raised Catholic, although we typically participated in the tradition even though I have no idea where it started. In years past I have given up pop, chips, cookies, and candy. I am sure there have been others, but those are the ones that reappeared each season.
Since I have been candy free for over a year, I couldn’t give up candy. I rarely drink pop, so that wasn’t much of a sacrifice. And frankly, I don’t find myself munching on chips or cookies as much as I used to either. Instead of giving something up, I thought why not add something to my lifestyle that would benefit it?
I decided, and keeping it some what close to a Catholic tradition, that I would have one meal a week that was fish! Yum. We all know fish is good for you, and this would help incentivize me to eat more of it!
One of my favorite fishes to eat is salmon. I am also just realizing how easy it is to make. It always appeared to be a chore, and my husband isn’t fond of “stinking up the house” with fish, but salmon is actually not a chore, and it is not smelly.
What I do: Scope out Cub, Kowalski’s or another local grocery store or health foods store for a good-looking piece of salmon. I also pair it with a sweet potato…or is it a yam? I am pretty sure it is usually a yam, which is located right by the potatoes.
When I get home I peel and slice the yam or sweet potato and boil it until soft. Mean while, the oven is preheated to 375 degrees. The salmon is prepped with a garlic olive oil and mustard mixture. Basically I just mix like 2 tbsp of olive oil and a couple of squirts of mustard. Usually I use a fancy mustard, like Grey Poupon or a mustard that has seeds in it. I mix it all together and spread it across the salmon and bake for 20 minutes.
I mash up the yam or sweet potato, add a little pepper, and I have an incredibly amazing, healthy meal. I try to throw in some greens as well, like broccoli or something, but sometimes the salmon is enough!
Do you have a favorite salmon recipe?
