Monday Mangia - Blackened Salmon & Citrus Salad

We love blackened fish so make it once every couple of weeks. This recipe along with the simple salad will continue to be a delicious summer meal too.
Dry Seasonings: 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 tsp chili powder, ½ tsp cumin, ½ tsp garlic powder, 1 dash wasabi powder, 1 dash onion powder, 1 pinch sea salt, 1 pinch pepper (plus Tbls of lemon juice).
First, combine all the dry seasonings and pat on dried, boneless salmon pieces that has been sprinkled with lemon juice (we use 4 ounces of salmon per person, we are very much into portion control as we have been modifying our eating habits over the past few months). Set fish aside (or back in refrig, if it is going to be more than 30 minutes before you begin cooking).
Next, make the citrus salad dressing - only four ingredients plus your favorite bag of mixed greens! 1 medium orange, ½ tablespoon garlic oil, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tsp soy sauce.

Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
3. Combine seasoning spices in a small bowl.
4. Dry salmon filets and sprinkle with lemon juice.
5. Sprinkle with seasoning spices, using all the spice mixture on one side of the fish and press firmly into the flesh.
6. Heat non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and spray with cooking spray.
7. When the pan is hot, add the salmon seasoning side down.
8. Sear for two minutes, watching closely to make sure it doesn’t burn, just gets richly dark, dark brown. Almost black.
9. Flip and sear another 2 minutes and then remove to the oven.
10. Bake another 5 – 6 minutes until salmon is just cooked through. A knife inserted at the thickest part of the meat should just barely flake the meat apart.
11. Toss salad greens with dressing and serve with salmon.
Check out other great Monday posts here.

Enjoy!