Broiled Herb Mustard Glazed Salmon with Lemon Balsamic Grilled Asparagus

Broiled Salmon with Herb Mustard Glaze, Lemon Balsamic Grilled Asparagus and fresh cut corn from the cob. Squeeze a wedge of lemon over the salmon and that’s it.

I like to watch The Food Network and one of my favorite chefs on the network is Giada De Laurentiis.  Giada has a wonderful salmon recipe that we enjoy, so I thought I’d share it with you.  I don’t follow the recipe exactly, but it still comes out delicious.  First, here’s the recipe and then I’ll tell you what I don’t do:

I used dried thyme because I didn’t have fresh. For the wine I used a pinot grigio. Since I was only making 2 pieces of salmon, I halved the recipe.

Broiled Salmon with Herb Mustard Glaze –  by Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients for 6 Servings
2 garlic cloves
3/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
3/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon dry white wine
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
Nonstick olive oil cooking spray
6 (6 to 8-ounce) salmon fillets
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 lemon wedges

Directions
In a mini food processor, combine garlic, rosemary, thyme, wine, oil, Dijon mustard, and 1 tablespoon of whole-grain mustard. Grind the mustard sauce until combined, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a small bowl. Add remaining 1 tablespoon of whole-grain mustard to the sauce and stir to combine. Set aside mustard sauce.

Preheat the broiler. Line a heavy rimmed baking sheet with foil. Spray the foil with nonstick spray. Arrange the salmon fillets on the baking sheet and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Broil for 2 minutes. Spoon the mustard sauce over the fillets. Continue broiling until the fillets are just cooked through and golden brown, about 5 minutes longer.

Transfer the fillets to plates and serve with lemon wedges.

Serves: 6; Calories: 294; Total Fat: 11 grams; Saturated Fat: 2 grams; Protein: 45 grams; Total carbohydrates: 3 grams; Sugar:0 grams; Fiber: 0 grams; Cholesterol: 115 milligrams; Sodium: 463 milligrams

Now for what I don’t do…I skip the food processor step to ground down the mustard and herbs.  We don’t mind the texture of the whole-grain mustard and the herbs, so one less step is fine with me.

Whole Grain Mustard is delicious.

I didn’t have fresh thyme, so I used dried thyme leaves.  You can find food equivalents here for thyme.

I did have fresh rosemary and fresh garlic.

Instead of using a food processor, I just whisked everything together in a little bowl.

I used a foil lined cookie sheet sprayed with oil to cook the fish under the broiler.

Rinse & pat the salmon dry. Season with fresh ground pepper & salt to taste.

Put the salmon in the pan and broil it for 2 minutes before you add the glaze.

After I spoon the glaze on the salmon, I spread it around with a brush to coat evenly.

Pop it under the broiler for about 5 more minutes, or until the glaze gets bubbly and starts to turn a golden brown.  Squeeze some lemon on the fish before eating and you won’t be disappointed.

If you like salmon and you like mustard, you’re going to like this recipe.

Last week I bought a bottle of lemon balsamic vinegar at a local farmer’s market.  I wasn’t actually looking to buy it, but I just happened to be standing near enough to get called over to do some taste testing.  I tried the lemon and the raspberry flavors.  Both were delicious, but I decided on the lemon because I thought it would be more versatile.

I didn’t have any recipes that called for lemon balsamic vinegar, so I did some snooping around the web and found a recipe at Amee’s Savory Dish blog.  It’s called Lemon Balsamic Grilled Asparagus and just by luck, I had some asparagus.  Here’s the recipe straight from the blog:

My ingredients cut down for 2 servings.

Lemon Balsamic Grilled Asparagus – Amee’s Savory Dish

Ingredients:
2 bunches medium size asparagus (large enough stalks to place on grill without falling through, plus the thicker asparagus hold up better when grilling)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp Lowcountry gourmet’s lemon white balsamic vinegar (or your favorite white balsamic)
3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh garlic, minced
1 tsp lime frost sea salt (or regular sea salt)
1 tsp fresh lemon or lime zest
fresh ground pepper to taste

Mix all marinade ingredients in a bowl with a whisk.  Set aside.

Wash asparagus and trim about 1″ off the thick end.  Place into a 9×13 dish and pour marinade on top.  Refrigerate for at least an hour to mingle flavors.

Preheat grill and turn heat to medium.  Place asparagus directly onto the grill rack.  Reserve marinade.

Cook for 4-5 minutes per side, checking frequently so you don’t overcook them.  They should be tender but still have a slight crunch.  Pour leftover marinade through a fine strainer to remove bits of raw garlic and drizzle over asparagus before serving.

I made a few changes in the preparation of this recipe:

I cut the recipe down because I only made a small bunch of asparagus for 2 people.

I didn’t have the lime frost sea salt that the recipe calls for, so I used regular sea salt.

I have a little zesting tool that makes it easy. Remember to only use the rind with color, not the white skin underneath.  It’s bitter.

I added the marinade to the asparagus in a glass dish and put it in the refrigerator.

Marinate the asparagus for at least 1 hour.

I cooked the asparagus on the stove in my grill pan instead of on the outside grill.  Turn the asparagus occasionally to cook evenly.

I cooked the asparagus over med-high heat. Grill it until tender, but keep your eye on it so it doesn’t get overdone.

The last change I made was that I didn’t drizzle the remaining marinade over the asparagus.  I’m sure it would have tasted fine, but  I decided to drizzle a little of the lemon balsamic vinegar over it instead.  I liked the taste of the vinegar, lemony with a little tang.  Tasted great.

I bought some white corn on the cob at the farmer’s market, too.  I cut it off of the cob and cooked it in the microwave on high with a little water for about a minute.  I drained the water, added a little butter, salt & pepper.  It was a great addition to the meal without having to fuss with the cob.

If you happen to try either of these recipes, leave a note to tell me what you think.