Salmon Nicoise Salad with Dijon Caper Dressing

Salmon Nicoise Salad with Dijon Caper Dressing tastes like a “treat yourself” meal, but it’s gluten free, sugar free, low-carb, paleo-friendly, and deceptively easy to prepare. I developed this recipe for Healy Eats Real, so click here to get the recipe!

I’ve always liked salmon a lot, but currently: for real obsession status.

And I don’t think I’m exaggerating here.

I do think I ~~probably~~ definitely overuse the word “love” when it comes to food — I LOVE peaches. I LOVE tomato sandwiches. I LOVE runny eggs. I LOVE hot glazed Krispy Kreme donuts. — and that’s why I’m elevating salmon to OBSESSION.

This obsession started a couple of weeks ago. I started a new job. I now work in corporate wellness for an upscale business dining company and they serve salmon on the salad bar. Not canned salmon. Not frozen salmon. Not overcooked and dry salmon. But delicious, fresh, tender, juicy, cooked-to-a-perfect-medium salmon. And now I am having salad every day just so I can have the salmon.

I actually Googled this week: How much is too much salmon?

Answer: Truth be told, I didn’t read a whole lot about it because I was like, “Do I really even care?” But I think it said something like, “Unless you’re pregnant, you cannot eat too much salmon. There are so many omega-3’s. Eat salmon at least twice per week.” If you want more details, read on because I feel obligated to give you a real answer being that I’m a dietitian and all.

The American Heart Association recommends consuming at least two 3.5-ounce servings of fatty fish (this includes salmon) per week. Children and pregnant women should limit intake of fish or shellfish that are low in mercury (this includes salmon) to 12 ounces per week. The National Health Service suggests an upper limit of about 20 ounces per week for the general population. Which means that I can totally have salmon on my salad Monday through Friday. Done deal.

Dietitian Danielle recommends baking, broiling, grilling, or poaching salmon so as to add minimal fat. Each 3.5-ounce portion of Atlantic Salmon contains 205 calories and 22 grams of protein. It’s low in saturated fat and high in omega-3 fatty acids. It’s filling. It’s energizing. And…

…most importantly… salmon is OBSESSIVELY delicious. So go prep that Salmon Nicoise Salad for tonight’s dinner and for tomorrow’s lunch.