Growing up, my sister and I were the only two non-fish lovers in the family. Even Christmas Eve where traditionally fish is served at dinner in my Italian household, my sister and I would have something different. Working with children
, I pride myself on not having been a picky eater growing up (brussel sprouts were one of my favorites), but fish was something I never could get into it. It tasted, dare I say, fishy to me (of course it would be…it’s fish!) But in my twenties, I am proud to say that I now like tuna, sea bass, shrimp, and salmon. I am still hoping to expand on this, but for now I am pretty happy with myself…I think my childhood self would be too!
One of the reasons I really wanted to like salmon is due to the many benefits of consuming this lean protein. Two servings of fatty fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel, trout, sardines) a week is enough to get the recommendation for omega 3 fatty acids from your diet. Omega 3 is shown to help reduce inflammation in the body, improve cardiovascular health, depression, and improve brain function to name a few.
After seeing Nicole’s A+ rating on this dish, I knew this baked dijon salmon would be my first adventure in preparing this fish at home.
Baked Dijon Salmon (seen on Prevention RD) serves 4
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup pecans, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
- 4 (5-oz) wild Alaskan salmon fillets
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 lemon, for garnish
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 F.
In a small bowl, stir together butter, mustard, and honey. Set aside.
In another bowl, mix together breadcrumbs, pecans, and parsley.
Brush each salmon fillet lightly with honey mustard mixture, and sprinkle the tops of the fillets with the bread crumb mixture. Bake salmon 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until it flakes easily with a fork. Garnish with a wedge of lemon and serve immediately.
On the side I roasted up some vegetables. In a pan went squash, zucchini, and eggplant with olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. I roasted them in the oven on 400 degrees for about 25 minutes, mixing every few minutes.
As my first venture into cooking seafood, I would say this was a success!
The delicious crust gave the salmon a crunchy, slightly sweet flavor and kept the filet juicy.
The fish was tender and perfectly flaky. It practically melted in my mouth. Here’s to new foods…and being one serving away from getting my omega 3’s in for the week. 
I am happy with how well this recipe turned out. I will be on the lookout for more fish recipes in the future.
I am off to work here in a bit! The weather here in Vegas is a bit overcast which is such a nice break. Hoping for rain!
Other Swanky Scoop:
Remember, only a couple more days to enter the Yasso Giveaway! Be sure to enter! I will be announcing the winner this Thursday!
What food did you dislike as a child, that you love now? What is your favorite fish and why?
{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
Love roasting up veggies for a side. And I bet that crust would work for tofu as well. When I was a kid I hated green bell peppers. I prefer red or orange now, but will definitely eat green if they’re cooked.
WOW! I’m loving this recipe! I will be bookmarking this post! Thanks for sharing! Growing up I was never a big fan of soup…I’m not a super soup fan to this day but it’s not as bad as I once thought it was!
We have such similar fish experiences haha. I wouldn’t touch it until about 2 years ago and I’ve slowly been adding more and more fish since then. This looks good, but does it have a strong mustard flavor? I’m not a huge mustard fan, but I don’t mind it if it’s not overwhelming. If it’s not too “mustardy” I want to try it!
No, the mustard flavor is very subtle actually. You could probably even use a honey mustard if you wanted. But no, definitely not overwhelming.
Rain in Vegas?! Im actually going there tomorrow for a quick 3 nights with my fam! Any must eats or must see???
The salmon looks SO good
Oh fun! Yeah, our weather has been a bit odd. I will cross my fingers that you get some sun.
I am the worst local ever, but here’s the link to my Vegas restaurants tab if you wanted to look at that for ideas. http://swankydietitian.com/restaurants/ There are so many good places though!
I don’t think I ever ate fish as a kid…other than fish sticks!
I LOVE fish and am also loving the way you prepared this! It looks fantastic!
As a kid I hated (or thought I hated) avocados – LOVE them now!
And this salmon looks great! I eat salmon often but I never do anything besides add salt and pepper – I’m going to have to try this!
I think the topping definitely helped ease me into eating this. I enjoyed it, but it added a lot more flavor.
Oh goodness, I was as picky as they come in terms of what I would eat as a child. Fish was out for sure, but now salmon is one of my favorite things. This recipe looks great as I have a somewhat strange affinity for dijon mustard!
Salmon is something I didn’t try until college. My mom wasn’t a fan of it, so we just never had it around. But now it’s one of my favorite things to order when eating out. That or any kind of seafood, really.
Sounds delish. Yum, I love salmon and even better with a Dijon sauce.
These salmon filets are some of the most beautiful I’ve seen! The parsley and pecans add such appealing color and texture. I’m drooling!
I ate almost *anything* when I was young, including spicy Indian curries, raw fish and seaweed (I lived in California, and a bunch of my friends were Japanese, so I wanted to be like them), and strong stinky cheeses. The only food I didn’t like was dried apricots. Funny, right?! I still can’t stand them, but am hopeful that my tastebuds will change some day!
That is really funny Sara!!
Perhaps it was too boring compared to all the other foods you ate.
I have to say though, I am definitely more adventurous now with trying new foods!
This looks incredible! What a great way to prepare salmon – and enough to convert almost any non-fish eater I’d imagine.
I also wasn’t a picky eater as a child…picky eaters are actually a pet peeve of mine (I know, not fair, but I can’t help it)! One thing I distinctly remember not liking as a kid, though, was potatoes au gratin. Super random, but my mom made them every now & then, and I can easily recall dreading dinner on those nights because I just hated that dish! I don’t mind them as much now, though.
Pet peeve? Awww – some pickyeaters actually have legit reasons for not liking many foods =).
I’m so glad you enjoyed this! Fish is great for quick meals since it requires no trimming and the cook times are relatively low.
Salmon is definitely a favorite!
Have you tried king crab? *swoon*
I was such a picky eater growing up. I hated vegetables. In fact, the only veggies I ate were cucumbers and carrots. It wasn’t until I was in my early 30′s that I started to eat different veggies – um, turns out my mom just overcooked all her fresh veggies and that’s why I didn’t like them!
Now I love zucchini, broccoli, asparagus, baby spinach – it feels like my fridge is empty without veggies!
And I know love ahi tuna, chilean sea bass, shrimp, lobster – but salmon is one that is still too “fishy” for me!
You know what’s HYSTERICAL?? When I was little I hated ALL HEALTH FOOD (anything green touching my pasta and I wouldn’t eat it)! I even ran away from home when my mom served Salmon for dinner!! I was gone for 2 days! The reason why this is SOOO FUNNY is because now I eat salmon EVERY SINGLE NIGHT! I cannot go a day without it. My middle name should be changed to salmon-lover! LOL!! I am completely obsessed with seafood and literally dream about it! Tonight I am having… salmon (LOL) and chilean sea bass! SO good!
My family has the traditional Italian XMAS EVE dinner too! The feast of 7 fishes, right?? Yum! Man, I cannot wait until the HOLIDAYS – I am craving them so badly!
That is too funny!! I recently tried chilean sea bass and LOVED it!
And yes, we have always eaten fish Christmas Eve. Maybe I should be brave this year and actually partake.
Thanks for stopping by!
I cant wait to make this (with GF breadcrumbs)-looks delicious! I didn’t like salmon as a kid either
. And, I didn’t like avocado either if you can believe it. Now it’s something I could happily eat every day!
This looks like a great idea for salmon! We are big fans of fish. Salmon patties are a staple in our house because they are pretty economical compared to fresh fish and then I throw in some canned sardines for good measure
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