GRAIN-FREE, EGG-FREE, DAIRY-FREE
I’m all about the one-pan dinner. You get a complete hot meal, it basically cooks itself, and there are hardly any dishes to clean up. It’s the perfect solution to a busy weeknight, because you can get in a home workout, tidy up the house, or watch some Netflix while it’s baking. The salmon is topped with my dairy-free basil pesto for a punch of flavor. It’s okay if the salmon skin is still on. The fish will detach effortlessly after it’s cooked.
PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES
COOKING TIME: 45 MINUTES
SERVES 4
12 ounces fingerling potatoes, halved lengthwise
Olive oil or melted ghee for cooking
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
8 ounces green beans, ends trimmed
1½ pounds salmon, cut into 4 equal pieces
For the basil pesto
3 cups packed basil leaves (about 2 large bunches)
¼ cup pine nuts
2 cloves garlic
Juice of 1 lemon
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread the halved potatoes on the sheet. Drizzle them with about a tablespoon of olive oil or ghee, and sprinkle them with a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. With your hands, toss the potatoes so they’re well coated. Bake them for 15 minutes.
Remove the sheet from the oven, add the green beans, stirring them around a bit to coat them in the oil, and return the sheet to the oven for another 15 minutes.
While the beans are cooking, make the pesto. In a food processor, combine the basil, pine nuts, garlic, and lemon juice, and pulse the mixture several times, until the big chunks are broken down. Then turn the food processor on and slowly add the olive oil. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. You’ll use about ¼ cup of the pesto for this recipe. Store the rest in the refrigerator (it will last about three days).
Remove the sheet of vegetables from the oven. Make room on the tray for the salmon, adding it skin side down. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the pesto onto each piece, then return the baking sheet to the oven for about 12 to 15 more minutes. Thinner pieces of salmon will need less time.
Change It Up
− Swap out the fingerling potatoes for sweet potato wedges.
− Not into salmon? Use any firm whitefish, and cut the cooking time down to about 10 to 12 minutes.