An Anti-Inflammatory Salmon Dinner

This is a simply fabulous dinner for two or three. You can easily multiply the recipe, make the salsa the morning of the dinner, and cook the carrots for longer than the stated time.  The goal here is to get the house smelling wonderfully, serve up a healthy meal, and have a fantastic presentation that is sure to be an eye-pleaser for your guests.  And if you clean the dishes as you go along, you won't have a huge mess on your hands.  We use the same pot for the carrots twice, and we use the same skillet for the salmon twice also, as we return the dish for more flavor and the finishing touches!  

Menu:

Salmon with Dill and Olives

Baby Carrots with Dill, Parsley, and Garlic

Papaya and Tomato Salsa with Cilantro

Water

Papaya and Tomato Salsa with Cilantro

1/2 cup fresh papaya, chopped

3/4 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Place all items in a small serving bowl and refrigerate to cool down while the other items are cooking. Sure to be a crowd-pleaser and a great pairing with the salmon and dill. Go ahead and throw away the stems and core of the tomato, cleaning your counter before proceeding with the carrots and salmon.  You'll be glad you did, and the kitchen will look much cleaner. Serves 2 or 3.

Baby Carrots with Dill

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup baby carrots

Dash of salt

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. Do not substitute.

1/4 teaspoon fresh garlic, chopped finely

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped

Bring water to boil and then add baby carrots.  Bring to boil again, then simmer on medium for 40 minutes.  Do not discard carrot water as it contains water-soluble vitamins.  Check for doneness and then remove all carrots to a cutting board.  Reserve water in a cup. While chopping carrots, saute garlic in same pot.  This will make the house smell wonderful and the neighbors will get hungry. Add parsley and dill.  Then add all the chopped carrots.  Simmer and stir frequently; do not leave the pot.  Gradually use all the reserved water to replenish with vitamins.  Carrots will stay hot for some time because of their nature, but you can simmer them for 2 minutes on medium high when it is time to serve. Serves 3 or 4.

Salmon with Dill and Olives

Atlantic salmon, farm-raised                                 4 fillets

Olive Oil                                                               2 teaspoons per fillet

Black and Green Olives, chopped finely              1 teaspoon per salmon fillet

White or wheat flour, unbleached                         1 tablespoon

Half and half                                                         2 tablespoons

Pour olive oil into skillet on medium high. Add salmon filets, then top with chopped olives.  Cover.  Let simmer for 10 - 15 min.  The olives will bake into the top of the salmon.  Turn over carefully and then Cover again.  Let simmer again for 10 min.  Return to original position and cook for 5 more minutes.  You can turn off the skillet and finish dinner preparations for the baby carrots and the salsa, as you will return the fillets to the skillet for sauce and heating up. Check for doneness and allow for additional cooking if desired.  Remove salmon from skillet.

Keep skillet on medium.  Drizzle flour onto leftover oil.  Whisk rapidly, crushing lumps.  Slowly add half and half, simmer.  Sauce thickens. May add water to thin.  For serving, return salmon fillets to skillet and cook on medium high for 2 min. Dot top of fillet with spots of sauce for extra yumminess.

The IF Tracker

by Dr. Margaret Aranda

Just a short blurb here about the IF Tracker.  It assigns an 'inflammatory' or...as the case may be, an "anti-inflammatory' number to each food you eat.  I've been on the Low-Glycemic Index Diet for about two months now, and I don't think that I will ever go back to eating the way that I did before (that was a Pre-Diabetic diet, and No Thank You!)  There are 2,200 foods pre-wired in to the Ap, and it is very user-friendly.  How did I learn about it?  From the Cenegenics Times quarterly Newsletter!

For example, on Day One, I ended up with 1,200 positive points, only because I ate Atlantic salmon for dinner.  Surprisingly, my boiled egg, yogurt, salad, and carrots did not add up to much on the anti-inflammatory roster. None of these foods do much to 'add' to the anti-inflammation aspects of your diet.

On Day Two, I ate salmon, carrots, and salad too, but this time I skipped items that did not land me in the 'positive' range.  So at the end of the day, I could still drink my coffee with half-and-half, and wala! I'm 2,400 + points toward anti-inflammation.

I had no idea that peas, grapes, and papaya don't do much for me here.  It's the Serrano peppers, onions, garlic, olive oil, and fish that add in by adding a huge positive value to the roster.  Especially the fish. Wow, I can't believe how good fish is for you, and after only two days of the IF Tracker, I'm hooked.

Here's my dinner tonight:

FOOD	PORTION	IF VALUE
Atlantic Salmon, farm-raised	4 oz	1,182
Olive Oil	2 tsp	53
Baby Carrots	¼ cup	39
Dill, fresh	¼ tsp	39
Garlic, raw	1/8 tsp	9
Onions, raw	1/8 cup	73
Tomatoes, cooked	2 tbsp	2
Papaya, fresh	1 1/3 tbsp	3
Cilantro	1 1/3 tsp	3
White flour, unbleached	¾ tsp	-3

Add to the above: lox for breakfast with cup of coffee; almond snack; tuna salad with lettuce and tomatoes, zucchini, carrots.

My total IF Tracker points for the day? 2,479.
Calories = 1,104
Fat (g) = 72
Protein (g) = 79
Carbs (g) = 39

I'm loving this! I know that I still have a long way to go to really 'get' this, but hey, it's only Day Two!

The kids eat the whole plate, company raves aloud, and everyone feels great after a meal!
Here's the Menu:

Salmon and Olives, with Olive Sauce
Papaya and Tomato Salsa, Cilantro Bits
Baby Carrots, Garlic, Parsley, and Dill Weed

Mmmmm!  This dinner is a keeper!