Quick, Easy, Yummy: Salmon With Balsamic Glaze and Spinaquinoa

My husband and I try to keep it quick, easy, and yummy on a daily basis if we can help it. This is one of our favorite meals to enjoy on a busy evening.

I normally enjoy salmon baked or in a sinigang stew, but when I'm in a hurry, I just toss it in a pan to fry. It's a no-brainer and totally foolproof.

You will need:

• Fresh salmon fillets. Go to your local fishmonger, and do NOT use frozen fillets, like, ever.
• Balsamic vinegar. The amount depends on how much salmon you have; you're going to use it to glaze your cooked salmon. For every pound of salmon, use a third of a cup of balsamic vinegar, plus a quarter cup of water.
• The juice of half a lemon, more should your taste buds desire. But really, half a lemon should be enough.
• If you're using a third of a cup of balsamic vinegar, use a quarter of a cup of light, packed brown sugar. Do the math if you're using more or less.
• Sea salt and black pepper
• Olive oil and a tablespoon of butter to coat your pan
• Chopped green onions. My husband and I like a LOT of green onion. But you can use it for added taste or garnish.
• For the spinaquinoa -- my twist on your regular side dish of quinoa -- you will need quinoa (obviously), and fresh baby spinach.

What you will need to do:

• Pat salmon dry and season both sides with sea salt and pepper. Set aside.
• I like doing the balsamic glaze beforehand. Add balsamic vinegar, water, lemon juice, and brown sugar in a small bowl, and whisk until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
• Heat pan to medium and coat with olive oil and butter. Once butter is melted, place salmon in pan skin side down and cook 5-6 minutes or until fish is half-cooked. You can see when the fish becomes lighter in color halfway through.
• Flip fish and cook another 4-5 minutes or until fully cooked. Plate your fish.
• Pour balsamic mixture in pan. It will sizzle, but fear not. Stir occasionally and let cook until mixture is thick, about 6-8 minutes, depending on how thick you want it, really.
• Pour glaze on top of cooked salmon and top with chopped green onions.

Oh, while all this is happening, you might also want to start cooking your quinoa based on package instructions. To make spinaquinoa, once quinoa is cooked, turn heat down, and toss as much or as little baby spinach as you want into the quinoa and mix until spinach is wilted and well incorporated.

Et voila! Quick, easy, and yummy salmon with balsamic glaze and spinaquinoa. You can also do kale and quinoa (can't think of a witty nickname for it).

For dessert, and to continue our attempt to be healthy, I whipped up a fancy raspberry with Greek yogurt and fresh mint concoction, topped with agave nectar. It didn't turn out so well, so it didn't make it in the blog.

Our attempt to do overnight oats will not make it in the blog, either.