Herb-roasted salmon, potatoes, carrots, and sugar snap peas

Now that vacation is over it's back to cooking for ourselves! Last night was too nice not to break out the grill, so burgers were on the menu. Tonight it was salmon with roasted vegetables. This recipe is tasty, healthy and requires every mixing bowl in your kitchen. The sauce has quite a kick and would be great as a stand alone dip. Now, on to the recipe . . .

First, the salmon is marinated in an oil, lemon juice, garlic and coriander mixture.

A quick sauce is then made from yogurt, thaini, oil, lemon juice, garlic, lemon peel and an herb mixture of chives, dill and mint.

The vegetables are mixed with oil and coriander and roasted until tender. Finally, the salmon is roasted as the vegetables finish cooking.

Herb-Roasted Salmon, Potatoes, Carrots, and Sugar Snap Peas
Slightly modified from Bon Appetit
Serves 4

2 green onions, chopped (we used chives from the garden!)
2 Tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh mint, chopped
1 tsp coriander powder
4 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice, divided
2 cloves minced garlic, divided
1 tsp grated lemon peel, divided
4 6-ounce salmon fillets
1/2 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 Tbsp tahini
12 ounces fingerling potatoes, halved (we used baby yukon golds)
1 bunch baby carrots, trimmed
8 ounces sugar snap peas (we used snow peas)

Toss green onions, dill and mint in a small bowl and set aside. Whisk 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 garlic clove, 1/2 teaspoon lemon peel and half of coriander in a separate bowl. Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper and add to the marinade. Let salmon marinate for 15-20 minutes. Mix yogurt, thaini, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 garlic clove and 1/2 teaspoon lemon peel in a small bowl. Stir in half of the herb mixture.

Position one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven; preheat oven to 400. Brush two large rimmed baking sheets with oil. Toss potatoes, carrots, remaining coriander and two tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Spread potato mixture on one baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast on top oven rack until almost tender, about 20 minutes. Put the potatoes cut side down for best results.

Arrange salmon on second oiled sheet. When the 20 minutes are up, toss the snow peas in the remaining marinade, then add to the potatoes. Transfer the potatoes to the lower oven rack and place the salmon on the upper rack. Roast until the salmon is cooked through, about 8 minutes. Transfer salmon to plates. Mix remaining herb mixture into vegetables. Serve with salmon and yogurt sauce.

Back from vacation!

Hello loyal readers (Mom, Dad, Erin, Morgan)! We're back from our vacation to the Midwest full of baseball, museums and zoos. Oh, and hot dogs. Speaking of hot hogs, here is the famous Chicago Dog! Yes, there is a hot dog buried underneath those onions, peppers, pickles, relish and celery salt. Despite the fact that this is a Chicago tradition, it was quite difficult to find at US Cellular Field, home of the Chicago White Sox. It was also impossible to eat. Despite these obstacles it was really good - even if I wasn't allowed to add ketchup (according to the signs, this is strictly forbidden).

Next up is the famous Chicago deep dish pizza, in this case from Giordano's. I am a New York pizza person, but this was actually way better than expected. The massive amounts of dough, cheese, sauce and toppings were filling, but not overwhelming.

The next stop was Blueberry Hill, a burger place in the Delmar Loop section of St. Louis. Here is the famous hickory burger, covered with spreadable cheddar cheese and grilled onions. The cheese was terrible, but the rest was really good, including the local Schlafly Summer Lager.

Other highlights included St. Louis-style ribs in Chesterfield, Missouri and a great burger at Sobelman's Pub in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Now, back to catching up on a week's worth of TiVo . . .