Salmon Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

Complete meal salads are kind of my thing. This Salmon Salad with Basil Vinaigrette is a fall/winter favorite so many reasons, not the least of which is how beautiful it is….
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The Salmon Salad with Basil Vinaigrette:

Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, seared salmon served on a bed of greens, roasted butternut and tomatoes, all drizzled with gorgeous, bright green basil vinaigrette. Absolutely stunning! 

The Basil Vinaigrette:

This fresh basil dressing is made using three ingredients: organic extra virgin olive oil, fresh basil pesto, and white balsamic vinegar (or Champagne vinegar)  Look at that color! And this basil vinaigrette literally takes  two minutes to make. 

What You Need for Dressing:

A great olive oil– I love Cobram Estates California Extra Virgin Olive Oil, it’s COOC approved, so no fake olive oil here! This olive oil is loaded with healthy Omega 9 fats, is anti-inflammatory, and is good for your heart, brain, and skin! 

Quality vinegar– my favorite hands down is Prelibato White Balsamic Vinegar.  This vinegar is so smooth and delicious you can drink it. I kid you not. No acidic aftertaste, just a soft, delicate flavor that makes every salad taste better. If you prefer to buy vinegar at a grocery store, you can usually find  O Organics on the shelf, not as smooth as Prelibato, but still good. 

Pesto- You can use fresh Homemade Pesto (<—my recipe) or store bought basil pesto. Both work well, so it’s up to you.

How to Work with Fresh Butternut Squash

You are certainly welcome to use pre-peeled and diced butternut squash purchased at the market. If you do, be sure it is cut fresh on site and not packaged and sitting on a shelf for weeks. Usually the store bought are cut into pretty large chunks, so be sure to cut them into 1/2″ cubes. If you want to go all out and peel and cut your own, here’s how: working with butternut squash can be easy or the hardest thing you will ever do in the kitchen. It depends on the tools you use. You absolutely need a ‘Y’ peeler and a sharp knife. Peel, cut in half, scoop out the seeds (a la Halloween pumpkin) and dice!

To Roast Butternut Squash:

Simply place squash on a parchment covered rimmed cookie sheet, drizzle lightly with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper, toss and place in oven, upper third rack, until edges are golden. Time saving tip! Always roast more than you need to have with eggs for breakfast the next day!

Put it All Together!

Assemble and you have a beautiful complete meal salad which is high in protein and healthy fats.

Making This Salad Whole30 and Dairy Free:

To make this salad Whole30 compliant and dairy free, skip the goat cheese and use my dairy free pesto recipe.

Love Salmon and Need More Recipes?

Take a look at this collection of salmon recipes!

 The Recipe: Fall Salmon Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

Tips and what you will need:  If making your own pesto, you will need a food processor .To peel and cut squash you will need a “y” peeler and a good knife. You will also need a rimmed cookie sheet, unbleached parchment paper and a good pan.

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5 from 2 votes

Salmon Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

A gorgeous, healthy, complete meal salad.

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Keyword fall recipes, salmon salad, Whole30 recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4 salads

Author Linda Spiker

Ingredients

For Butternut Squash:

• 4 cups Butternut squash, peeled, cut into 1/2" cubes and roasted
• 1-2 tablespoon olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper pepper

For Salad:

• 4 cups baby greens
• 1 vine ripened tomato, diced
• 2 tablespoons red onion, diced or sliced
• ¼ cup roasted pine nuts
• 4 ounces creamy goat cheese (omit for Whole30 or dairy free)

Dressing:

• 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Tablespoons fresh basil pesto (store bought or homemade)
• 1 ½ Tablespoons White Balsamic or Champagne Vinegar

For Salmon:

• Four salmon fillets. skin on (if you don't like skin I have a tip for easy removal below)
• sea salt or kosher salt
• pepper
• olive oil

Instructions

For Butternut Squash:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place oven rack in upper third of oven. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a rimmed cookie sheet, set aside.
• Peel and cut butternut squash into 1/2" cubes. Place on parchment covered cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and toss until squash is well coated. Generously sprinkle with a few pinches of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Toss. Place Butternut squash in oven for 35-40 minutes or until edges are brown and crispy.
• While squash cooks make dressing and cook salmon.

For Basil Vinaigrette:

• Whisk all ingredients together. Place in the fridge.

For Salmon:

• Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper
• When squash has about 15 minutes left to cook: heat an oven safe panini or grill pan (or other heavy pan) on high heat for 3 minutes When pan is hot, add olive oil, turn heat down to med/high. Place salmon on pan skin side up (flesh side down) Cook for five minutes or until golden brown.
• Use fish spatula to gently turn salmon skin side down and place pan in oven alongside (or on rack below) squash for 8-10 minutes.
• Remove salmon and butternut squash from oven.

  IF you want to remove the skin, slide fish spatula between skin and flesh, lift salmon. Discard skin.

To plate:

• Allow squash and salmon to cool for a few minutes. Place greens on a platter. Toss greens in desired amount of basil vinaigrette, reserving a small amount for each piece of salmon. Add, squash, tomato, goat cheese, toss.
• Plate greens on four plates. Place salmon on top of greens, drizzle each piece of salmon with remaining basil vinaigrette. Garnish with pine nuts. Serve and thoroughly enjoy!

Notes

Note: Cook time for salmon will depend on how thick your salmon cut is and how well done you like it.

Need more salmon recipes? Here are a few favorites: Tropical Salmon, Fish Tacos, Scottish Salmon Sandwich, and Pesto Salmon with Parmesan Crisps!

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Post tags: Gluten free, grain free