January 01, 2019

Sheet pan dinner: Mustard salmon with crispy lentils and green beans

January 01, 2019/ Rebecca Davis

This sheet pan dinner is as delicious as it is easy and the clean up is a snap. If any of your resolutions involve more cooking, this is one you should add to the list!

Take me to the recipe!

Happy new year, all! Thanks for reading and cooking along with me this year. I hope you’ll stick around for 2019 too!

Are you all making resolutions this year?

There’s much talk about whether or not resolutions are a good move. I’ve historically used my resolutions as a way to punish myself for everything I think is wrong with me. And that feels like a negative way to start the year, no?

So, instead of resolving to eat “healthier,” I’m going to just make delicious food that emphasizes both deliciousness and nourishment. Staaarting….now!

This sheet pan dinner is fast, easy, and requires minimal prep. You can also make it even simpler by using some store-prepped ingredients. I use pre-cooked lentils that are available at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and other grocery stores in the refrigerated aisle.

I also opt for haricots vert over of straight green beans because you don’t have to trim the ends. Haricot vert are just a thinner and smaller variety of green beans. They can be more expensive, but if time is the priority, it may be worth the extra $1 or $2.

A couple of notes:

If using frozen salmon, thaw it before cooking. If cooking from frozen, the fish releases a lot of water, which affects the final texture of the vegetables and lentils.
Make sure you separate the sauce into two different bowls to reserve some for after the fish has cooked. You don’t want to dip your spoon or brush into the whole batch of sauce once you’ve touched the raw fish.

Mustard salmon with crispy lentils and green beans

Time: About 25- 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

1.5-2 lbs salmon (about 4 medium fillets)
1 lb haricot vert or green beans (if using green beans, trim the edges)
1 cup cooked lentils
2 very large shallots (or 3-4 smaller ones), cut into 1/4 inch slices
2-3 Tbsp olive oil, plus more for the sheet pan underneath the salmon
2 large pinches kosher salt
Mustard sauce (recipe below)

Mustard sauce
3 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3 Tbsp grainy mustard
Zest of 1 medium lemon
1 Tbsp lemon juice (from ½ a lemon, reserve the leftover juice)
1 tsp coriander
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp plain Greek yogurt
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425.

On a large rimmed sheet pan (about 13x18), mix together the green beans, sliced shallots, and cooked lentils. Toss with olive oil and salt and push to the sides of the pan.

Roast for about 7 minutes and remove from the oven.

While the veggies cook, make the mustard sauce. In a small bowl, mix together the sauce ingredient. I use a garlic press to really mince the garlic, but if cutting by hand, mince finely. Put half of the sauce into a separate bowl for later.

Once you remove the veggies from the oven, add some more olive oil to the center of the pan.

Place the salmon fillets skin-side down in the middle of the pan so that the skin is directly on the pan or foil.

Cover the flesh side of the fish fillets with about half of the mustard mixture and spread evenly. Reserve the rest of the mixture for later.

Roast the fish and veggies for 12-15 minutes, or until the salmon flakes easily with a fork and reads 145 on a thermometer.

Serve immediately.

March 23, 2017

Smoked salmon, goat cheese, and chive eggs

March 23, 2017/ Rebecca Davis

Eggs, salmon, chives, milk, and goat cheese are all you need for an easy and healthy dinner, lunch, breakfast or brunch. #meandthemoose ##eggrecipes #eggs #salmon #easybrunch #quickdinnerrecipes

Five ingredients and fifteen minutes are all you need for this easy and flavorful dinner, a fancy breakfast, or a fun brunch.

Take me to the recipe!

So, this dish started its life as an omelette, but if you’re anything like me, no matter how hot you get your pan and how much oil you use, certain days omelette’s just hang on tight. And since we’ve pretty much sworn off nonstick pans, scrambled eggs are our destiny.

Anyway, I first made these eggs for Father's Day 2015 and they’ve been in the rotation ever since. They’re delicious and SO FAST. If you want dinner on the table in under 20 minutes, make these. If you want a “special” breakfast that doesn’t take ages, make this. You get it!

These eggs are so basic, but the salmon and chives and cheese make them creamy and salty and herby.

A couple of notes:

I don’t salt the eggs because the salmon is so salty that I don’t often need more.
Don’t overcook these babies. These eggs are best when they’ve just barely stopped jiggling.
I DO cook the salmon a little bit because, strangely, I don’t love the texture of smoked salmon. I love raw salmon and cooked salmon, but that in-between phase isn’t my favorite. Just a little bit of heat makes the texture of the thinly sliced fish a little closer to cooked salmon, so it’s more to my taste. If you like smoked salmon, leave it out during the cooking and then add it on top of the cooked eggs to maintain the original texture.

Smoked salmon, goat cheese, and chive eggs

Time: 15 minutes, all active
Yield: Enough for two adults as a main course, 4 people as a side dish

1 Tbsp olive oil, butter, or fat of choice
6 eggs
3-4 Tbsp milk (whole or 2% both work)
2-3 oz goat cheese
2 Tbsp chopped chives
5 oz wild smoked salmon (or, one small package), torn into smaller pieces or roughly chopped.

Heat the butter or oil over a medium flame.

Crack the eggs into a medium bowl and vigorously whisk with a fork until the whites and yolks are well combined.

Add the milk, goat cheese, and chives and whisk again until the ingredients are reasonably incorporated (the goat cheese will still be in clumps).

When the pan is hot, pour in the egg mixture and add the salmon. Lower the flame to medium low or low.

Move the eggs around with a rubber spatula scraping the cooked layer from the bottom and letting the raw eggs run into the open spots. Repeat until the eggs are soft, but cooked, about 3-4 minutes.

January 17, 2017

Buffalo chicken and cauliflower burgers

January 17, 2017/ Rebecca Davis

Buffalo chicken burger | Me & The Moose. This burger is perfect for lunch or dinner or game day snacks. Throw an egg on top and it could also be breakfast. #meandthemoose #Glutenfree #burgers #easydinner #quickdinner #dinnerrecipes #lunch #lunchrecipes #gamedaysnacks #buffalochickenburger

These burgers have all the familiar flavors of a buffalo wing, but with a little extra nutrition from the cauliflower, ground almonds, and ground chicken.

Take me to the recipe!

Frank’s Red Hot and butter do a lot of the heavy lifting, flavor-wise. But these patties are so easy to throw together and taste so good. Using pre-riced cauliflower saves a step. For the rest, you just throw the ingredients together in a bowl, mix with your hands, and sear a couple of burgers in a hot skillet while basting with a mixture of the melted butter and hot sauce.

If you’re worrying that the cauliflower ruins an otherwise good burger, fear not. You can’t actually taste the cauliflower at all.

I also use almond meal or flour (either is fine- use whatever you have) as a binder with an egg, but since these are burgers and not a meatloaf or meatball, the binding is less important. Lots of burgers are simply meat and spices mixed together, so you can leave out the almond meal if you have an allergy or don’t have any.

These burgers are also really versatile if you want to make them into sliders or meatballs as a game day snack. You can also make extras and freeze a batch for the future. I like throwing a fried egg on top and calling these breakfast or tossing them into a salad with some crumbled blue cheese for lunch or a light dinner.

Buffalo chicken burgers

Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6 burgers

1 lb ground chicken
1 cup riced cauliflower
½ medium red onion, finely chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
½ cup almond meal
1 egg
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp butter
4-6 Tbsp Frank’s hot sauce

Add chicken, cauliflower, onion, garlic, almond meal, and egg to a large bowl and combine using your hands or a spatula. Form into 6 equal patties using a 1/3 cup measure.

In a separate bowl, melt the butter in the microwave. Add the hot sauce and stir to combine. Set aside.

Melt 1 Tbsp butter and heat over a medium low flame. When hot, add chicken patties and turn up the flame to medium.

While the first side is browning, sprinkle some of the butter/hot sauce mixture onto each patty being careful not to touch the raw meat with your brush or spoon. When the first side has a good sear, flip the burgers over and coat the other side with butter/hot sauce.

After 2-3 minutes, check the sear. If brown enough for your liking, turn the flame down to medium-low, cover, and let cook for another 5-6 minutes. When meat thermometer has reached 165, your burgers are done.

Elevated family food

Mustard salmon with crispy lentils and green beans

Smoked salmon, goat cheese, and chive eggs

Buffalo chicken burgers

Me & The Moose