White Balsamic Salmon Topped Salad

With the wonderful Chicago sunshine now making a slightly consistent appearance, I’ve been in the mood for salads. My favorite salad usually consist of fruit, nut and cheese. The only exception is if it’s a salad topped with salmon. Salmon is one of my favorite fish and I especially like it over fresh greens without too many other ingredients to take away from it’s flavor. Tonight, I made a salmon salad where I marinated the salmon in a white balsamic vinegar marinade.

I came across this white balsamic vinegar recipe and tweaked it slightly so the flavor was fairly subtle for my salad. I omitted the green onions and cilantro the original recipe called for. The result? Wonderfully seasoned salmon perfect with your favorite sides or on top of fresh spinach for a salad.

4 salmon fillets
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 cups baby spinach or preferred salad greens
sliced baby bella mushrooms
quartered cherry tomatoes
preferred salad dressing
(and any other salad toppings you prefer)

Season fillets with salt, pepper, and onion powder. Set aside in a baking dish.

In a medium bowl, mix together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, white balsamic vinegar, and sugar. Pour marinade over salmon; cover, and refrigerate overnight, or at least 6 hours.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

Arrange salmon on a broiling sheet. Place in a preheated oven, and bake for 5 minutes. Increase heat to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C), turn fillets, and broil 5 minutes more.

Place salmon over bed of greens and top with your favorite salad toppings. Serve with your preferred salad dressing.