Salmon with Honey Mustard Glaze & Honey Roasted Vegetables

After we had the last salmon recipe my husband and I decided to try and make fish at least once a week.  I decided this week I’d seek out a new recipe instead of making our favorite recipe.  I chose this one by the great reviews it received and the ingredients it called for.  This incorporates honey, which I love, and also calls for mustard.  Mentally tasting honey mustard made me think this is a combination you can’t go wrong with.  The original recipe calls for grilling the fillets but with it being Winter I baked them instead. 

In addition to making the salmon, with it being the weekend and having that much more time than a week night, I decided to go all out and make a side dish as well.  That’s of course in addition to my existing side dish staple, Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice (Long Grain & Wild).  For the dish I made from scratch I chose roasted vegetables with 2 vegetables that I’ve never even tried.  The photo in the cookbook looked good so I decided to give it a try.  Not being familiar with the ingredients I searched for pictures online before hitting the grocery store so I would know what to look for.

I successfully purchased the vegetables at the store but that didn’t mean I knew how to prep them or the basics of how to cook them.  After looking up information on the web I learned that parsnips are related to the carrot and have a sweet, nutty flavor.  Hmm interesting.  The original recipe calls for any type of winter squash.  I chose Butternut Squash purely based on namesake alone.  In getting the vegetables ready I searched YouTube for a video of how they should be cut and peeled.  If you haven’t cooked with these vegetables before here are two videos that demonstrate cutting and peeling techniques: parsnips, butternut squash.

As you can see, with the parsnips you want to slice off the very top and end tip.  Then peel with a potato peeler just like you would a carrot.  Cut lengthwise and core like you would an apple (the recipe calls for coring, however the core is edible, so it's up to you if you would like to core).  Done.  That was easy.  Note:  when I cut off the top and smelled it, I was not a fan.  My mind was pretty well made up that I would not like this dish.

With the squash there are multiple ways to cut it.  All the videos I watched showed the squash being very tough and awkward to cut (definitely needing some muscle).  I was nervous.  The video above demonstrates one way of cutting that makes it easier as sometimes the squash can be very large, making it that much harder to cut.  Instead of cutting the whole squash in half lengthwise, you cut it in half (right where the bulbous part meets the long narrow stem).  After, cut each of the halves in half (lengthwise).  Now you’ll need to remove/scoop out the seeds from the bulbous part.  Then it’s just a matter of using the potato peeler for peeling and a knife to cut into chunks.   I have to say when I opened the squash it had the most beautiful vibrant orange color.  It made me think for a split second that it was Fall outside and not Winter.

After the vegetables were cut the rest of the recipe was really quite simple.  There’s one thing that I’ll keep in mind for next time.  When the recipe says to boil the vegetables for 2 minutes it doesn’t mean put in boiling water, wait for the water to re-boil and then boil for 2 minutes.  When I dumped the vegetables into the boiling water I assumed the water needed to reach boiling again.  Wrong, they just need to cook for 2 minutes and then be strained.  Since I ‘over boiled’, I guess you could say, the vegetables came out a little mushy vs. being a bit crispy after they were roasted.  No biggie, they were still really good, but next time I will try the other method. 

What’s great about these 2 dishes is that you can bake them at the same time since they cook at the same temperature.  I started with cooking the vegetables first.  When I pulled them out to add the honey mustard mixture (30 minutes in) I put them back in the oven along with the salmon.

Like I said, I didn’t have high hopes for the vegetables after I smelled the sliced parsnip, however they came out great!   The glaze that was on the vegetables tasted good but was not strong enough to overpower the vegetables.  The parsnip had a sweet, nutty flavor just like I read about and I actually really liked them.  The squash had sort of a sweet taste as well.  This is silly but if you want an impressive dish that has great color, you should bake them for that reason alone.  The vegetables went perfectly along with the salmon.  The salmon recipe, I have to say is equally as good as our Tried & True, Honey Browned Salmon (recipe featured previously).  I didn’t think it would come that close in comparison but WOW the glaze for this fish was amazing.  I felt like I was eating a restaurant dish right at home.  My hubby was very impressed with it as well (even saying that I feed him like a king! LOL).  We both muttered Mmmm a few times and vowed again to definitely make fish once a week.  I highly encourage you to try this recipe if you’re looking for a good fish recipe

Salmon with Honey Mustard Glaze
Adapted from Recipe #67742 by Ratherbeswimmin, food.com
Serves 2
Prep Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of salmon fillet; divided into 2 fillets

Honey Mustard Glaze:

• 1 tablespoon packed dark brown sugar  (light brown sugar could be used as well)

• 1 tablespoon melted butter or margarine

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 1 tablespoon soy sauce

• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:
1.  Heat oven to 400°F
2.  In a bowl combine all the honey mustard glaze ingredients; stir to combine well.
3.  Lightly grease a shallow, oven proof, glass dish with PAM or butter. 
4.  Place salmon fillets in the dish and pour the honey mustard mixture on top; cover and refrigerate (30 minutes or up to 1 hour).
5.  Bake uncovered for 10 minutes; remove from oven and use a spoon to redistribute some of the fallen glaze back on top of the fillets.  Bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes or until the salmon is done and flakes easily with a fork.


Honey Roasted Vegetables
Adapted from The Vegetarian Cookbookby Reader's Digest (Amazon affiliate link)
Serves 4
Prep Time:  20mins
Total Time:  50 mins

Ingredients:

• 2 parsnips, peeled

• 1 butternut squash (small)

• 2 large potatoes, cut into wedges

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard (such as Deli Mustard)

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:
1.  Heat oven to 400°F
2.  Trim top and bottom off parsnips.  Peel and remove the woody core; cut into chunks. Peel butternut squash and cut into chunks.  Peel potatoes and cut into wedges.
3.  Cook the parsnips, squash, and potatoes in boiling salted water for 2 minutes, until slightly tender.  Drain.
4.  Add the oil to a shallow, oven proof, glass dish (medium-large size) and pre-heat in oven for 2-3 minutes.
5.  Once oil is pre-heated, remove from oven and add the vegetables.  Turn to coat in oil.  Return to oven and bake for 30 minutes.  To allow for even cooking turn vegetables halfway through cooking time.
6.  While vegetables are cooking, mix the honey, mustard, and lemon juice.
7.  After 30 minutes, remove vegetables from oven and pour the honey mustard mixture over them.  Stir to coat evenly.
8.  Return vegetables to the oven and continue to cook for another 15-20 minutes.