Grilled Salmon Salad with Blueberry Vinaigrette and Goat Cheese

Hello lovelies! Sorry for the silence around here last week, but I was thoroughly enjoying a self-imposed spring break. The family was off of school, I had a week off from work, and we had great friends visiting from out of town. We packed so much fun into just one week and it was truly fabulous! I’m sure the sunshine and warmer temps we have been welcoming on a regular basis played no small part in our happy week. We broke in the grill for the season recently with our traditional breaking-in-the-grill meal, grilled chicken fajitas. Since then, I have already lost track of how many meals have come off the grill, but they have all been excellent. One such meal was this grilled salmon salad with blueberry vinaigrette.

The evening I made this, I went to the store with an entirely different meal in mind but that was eventually replaced by the idea for this meal, which formed as I wandered around, choosing ingredients that sounded good to me. I think the general method of this also appealed to me, i.e. throw a bunch of stuff on the grill and make it salad. The base that is to become the blueberry dressing is first used to glaze the salmon. This may look a questionable grayish color mid-cooking but eventually darkens to a purplish-black that adds a really nice smoky-sweet flavor to the finished dish. Also, grilled baguette slices are added to the mix for croutons, taking the whole thing from good to great. Make ASAP. Repeat throughout spring and summer.

Yield about 4 servings

Ingredients

¼ cup olive oil, plus more for brushing baguette and oiling grates
1½ tbsp. honey
6-7 oz. fresh blueberries, divided
3 tbsp. white wine vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4 salmon fillets (about 5-6 oz. each)
1 medium yellow onion, sliced into ½-thick slabs (rings intact)
1 demi baguette, thinly sliced on the bias
About 6-8 cups mixed salad greens
2-3 oz. honeyed goat cheese

Directions

01
Heat a grill t0 medium-high. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the ¼ cup olive oil, honey and 4 ounces of the fresh blueberries. Heat over medium, stirring occasionally, until the blueberries are releasing their juices, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and puree until smooth with an immersion blender or the small bowl of a food processor. Reserve 3 tablespoons of this mixture for brushing the salmon pieces. Add the white wine vinegar to the remaining blueberry mixture and whisk until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
02
Brush the salmon pieces evenly with the reserved blueberry mixture on the skinless side of the fillets. Brush both sides of the onion slabs lightly with oil, and season with salt and pepper. Once the grill is heated, thoroughly oil the grates with additional olive oil. Place the salmon pieces on the grill, skin side down first. Also add the onion slabs to the grill. Let the salmon cook until the skin is crisp and darkened. Carefully flip once so that the glaze side is down. Flip the onions once during cooking, so that both sides get nicely browned. Continue to cook the salmon until the glaze side is blackened and the internal temperature registers 135˚ F on an instant-read thermometer. Once finished, carefully remove to a plate and let rest.
03
While the salmon is cooking, prep the remaining items for the grill. Lay the baguette slices out on a platter. Brush both sides lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Once the salmon and onion slices have been removed from the grill, add the baguette slices in a single layer. Grill, flipping once, until both sides are browned, about 1-2 minutes total. Remove to a cutting board and coarsely chop for croutons. Chop the onions as well.
04
Divide the greens among serving plates. Top each serving with a sprinkle of additional fresh blueberries, some of the grilled onions, grilled baguette pieces, honeyed goat cheese, a piece of salmon and a drizzle of the blueberry vinaigrette. Serve immediately.