Honey Sriracha Salmon Over Spiralized Broccoli Stems and Bell Pepper

So I have about a billion thoughts I want to get across in the post, and they're all a little jumbled in my head so bare with me. 

I'm a HUGE fan of spiralizing! And over the past year or so, I've come to realize how many different, amazing things you can spiralize. Two of these perhaps not-so-predictable things are bell peppers and broccoli stems. I've touched on broccoli stems with a couple other recipes and I think bell peppers once before, but I want to do a quick recap of how to spiralize each.

Broccoli stems are easy. Cut them off and shave off the side nub parts with a knife. The idea is to get the stem as cylindrical as possible, but don't go too crazy. It will be fine, trust me. Just try to get anything that's jutting out a ton off the sides. Cut the ends so they're flat, and spiralize as if it's a zucchini. 

Bell peppers seem complicated, but they really aren't. Cut off the top of the bell pepper, maybe about a centimeter below the stem, and remove the seeds from the inside. Have the open top part facing the blade when you spiralize, and the bottom of the pepper will attach the spiky end. Spiralize as you would any other vegetable. I've found that peppers tend to have a lot of juice, so just be aware you may want some paper towels nearby.

Okay, so now that we've covered how to spiralize them, I'm going to briefly touch on spiralizers. Every time I post a spiralized recipe, I get a lot of questions about which spiralizer I suggest. My major suggestion is to invest in a good one. I wouldn't settle for a small hand one, honestly, because you really won't use it that much because you just can't use it on as many things. My suggestion would be the Inspiralizer. It's comparable to some other, good quality spiralizers, but it reduces the amount of wasted vegetable which is actually a huge deal. For more information or to buy one, feel free to click the link below.

So onto the recipe. I've had the fortune of coming across Fix Hot Sauce lately, and it has literally be a game changer. It is by far the best sriracha I have ever had. They are not paying me to say this, I am not endorsed by them, it is JUST THAT GOOD. So I've pretty much been putting in on or in anything and everything. So I figured why not a nice, simple recipe with sriracha and throw in honey for a touch of sweetness.

Slight tangent here, I buy broccoli a lot. And if I buy broccoli, you pretty much know that there's some sort of broccoli stem concoction coming your way because they may be very high up there on my favorite vegetables to spiralize list. I also may or may not shop for broccoli by broccoli stem size now (insert embarrassed buldgey eyed emoji here).

So I had my broccoli stems laying around, and I thought they would be the perfect compliment to an Asian-ish salmon. Bell peppers came into my mind next, and the rest is history really.

Here's What You'll Need:

-3 red bell peppers, spiralized
-6 broccoli stems, spiralized (may need more or less depending on size)
-1 lb of salmon, cut into 3 equal pieces
-1/4 cup water
-1/4 cup Tamari (or low sodium soy sauce or liquid aminos)
-2 tbsp sriracha
-2 tbsp honey
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1 tbsp coconut oil

Instructions:

1) Mix together the water, Tamari, sriracha, honey, and garlic in large bowl or container. Marinate the salmon pieces in the sauce for at least an hour covered in your fridge.
2) Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
3) Cook the marinated salmon for about 12 minutes. The rule of thumb is 4-6 minutes per half inch thickness, so times may vary. DO NOT THROW OUT THE REMAINING MARINADE. You'll be using it as a sauce. 
4) In the meantime, heat up the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Toss in the broccoli stems and cook for about a minute.
5) Add in the bell pepper and cook for another minute or so.
6) Add in the leftover marinade and let it cook for 3-5 minutes.
7) Once the salmon is cooked, remove it from the oven.
8) Plate the pepper and broccoli stem mixture and top each with a piece of salmon.
9) Enjoy!

Not a fan of spiralizing or not want wanting buy a spiralizer at the moment? Feel free to make the salmon alone. I served mine in a variety of ways over on my Instagram, and you can still save the marinade to use as a sauce.

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Spiralized Broccoli Greek Yogurt Alfredo with Smoked Salmon and Mushrooms

If you haven't noticed, broccoli stem noodles are creeping up on my list of favorite spiralized vegetables. They taste like broccoli florets with an added crunchy texture, so basically they're perfect. Plus they go well with pretty much everything I've tried so far.

For some reason when I go to make them, I keep being drawn to a creamy sauce. So I figured, why not a healthier alfredo made with non fat Greek yogurt. Throw in some mushrooms and smoked salmon (or shrimp works just as well if you aren't a fan), and voila! A delicious dinner or lunch!

Here's what you'll need:

-4 broccoli stems, spiralized
-3 cloves of garlic, minced
-1 tbsp and 1 tsp ghee, separated (I use Farm to Gold)
-1/4 cup water
-One 6 oz container of nonfat plain Greek yogurt (I use Wallaby)
-3 tbsp shredded parmesan
-1 tsp dried parsley
-Black pepper to taste
-3 oz smoked salmon
-3 baby Bella mushrooms, chopped

Instructions:

1) In a large pan, heat up the tsp of ghee over medium high heat and add in 1 clove of garlic once it's melted. Let cook for about a minute alone.
2) Add in the spiralized broccoli stems, and let them cook for a good 5-7 minutes alone.
3) In the meantime, add the tbsp of ghee to a saucepan over low to medium heat, and let it melt. Add in the two tbsp of garlic and let cook for about a minute.
4) Add the water to the saucepan and remove from heat.
5) Progressively add in the Greek yogurt, mixing regularly.
6) Progressively add in the parmesan, mixing regularly. If it doesn't melt in because the mixture is no longer hot, you can put it over very low heat.
7) Mix in the parsley and black pepper.
8) Over in the broccoli pan, add in the mushrooms and let them cook down (about 3 minutes).
9) Add in the smoked salmon to the broccoli mixture and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.
10) Split the broccoli pan mixture between two bowls, and top each with half of the sauce. Mix together the sauce and veggie-salmon mixture within each bowl.
11) Serve and enjoy!

Let me know what you think in the comments below! I'd love to hear from you.