Shown served with Whole Wheat Molasses Bread and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc!
In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, there is a lot to love about this meal. First, wild salmon is a heart healthy delicacy with which Crowded Earth Kitchen recommends indulging as often as your budget allows. Baked on a bed of fresh baby spinach, dressed with a bit of citrus, and served with a delicious whole wheat bread (see 2/11/14 post), this meal is a nutritional superstar. Second, baking with parchment is the perfect combination of “really easy but looks complicated,” which makes it a perfect technique for impressing your guests without inducing a pre-dinner, kitchen meltdown.
You need exactly five items to prepare this fabulous entrée. That’s right, five. It’s that easy. Have fun, and let me know how your dinner turns out!
Ingredients (serves 2)
2 Wild Salmon fillets, skinned, 6 ounces each
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1 organic orange
Coarse ground black pepper
Parchment paper
Procedure
Step 1) Tear two rectangles from your roll of parchment paper, approximately 14 inches long. Fold them in half, and trace a half heart shape on the paper, as shown. Cut out your parchment hearts.
If you’ve never worked with parchment before, it’s sold right next to plastic wrap and aluminum foil.
Step 2) Open your parchment hearts and anchor them onto your work surface, so they don’t curl up (annoying!) as you are layering your ingredients. I find that salt and pepper shakers are just the right size for this.
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Step 3) Place two cups of fresh baby spinach on one half of each parchment heart. It’s OK if the spinach overlaps the center of the heart a bit, but leave 2 inches of empty space around the edge. You’ll need that space later!
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Step 4) Place a Wild Salmon fillet over the center of each spinach bed. Sprinkle with coarse ground pepper, and top with two slices of orange. Now comes the fun part!
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Step 5) Fold your empty heart half over the “stuffed” half, and begin sealing the edges by folding them tightly two or three times. If you’d like, you may staple the fold, but count the staples (hint: use the same number for each serving) and either remove or warn your dinner partner before serving!
Step 6) Place filled parchment hearts on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated, 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. After baking, carefully cut an X shape in the top of each parchment to allow steam to escape. The steam will curl the edges back, making a lovely presentation!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Crowded Earth Kitchen 
I don’t like spinach (yes that is true) but I like salmon. Could I use dill instead or just omit the spinach and not replace it with anything else.
Anything with flavors you prefer and a bit of moisture to help steam the salmon should work fine. I think a bed of fresh dill would work very well! If you’re using dried dill, I would rest the salmon on either additional slices of citrus fruit (perhaps lemon slices below and orange slices above), or maybe a slice of onion. I’d love to hear what you try, and how it turns out! 🙂
Made this tonight — it was fun and delicious. Love your website.