The thing about food is, it all tastes better when enjoyed with someone (or several someones) you love! Food is nourishment, but it is also community, it is celebration and it is love. When you put your passion, care, love and mindfulness into a meal, people will be eating your love. How incredible an idea is that?

If I could, I would give the universe to the people whom I love the most, so in my food, I seek to do just that.

Each Spoonful Contains the Universe

Pay attention to each spoonful of food. As you bring it up to your mouth, use your mindfulness to be aware that this food is the gift of the whole universe. The Earth and the sky have collaborated to bring this spoonful of food to you. While breathing in and out, you only need a second or two to recognize this. We eat in such a way that every morsel of food, every moment of eating has mindfulness in it. It takes only a few seconds to see that the food we’re holding in our spoon is the gift of the whole cosmos. While we chew, we maintain that awareness. When we chew, we know that the whole universe is there in that bite of food.

– Thich Nhat Hanh // How to Eat

The one contains the all.  When you pick up a lemon, you can know that the entire universe resides in that lemon. The earth, the sun, the sky. When you enjoy a dish made with the lemon, not only is the love and care of all that came together to grow that food contained within it, the love of the farmer, but also the love of the person who made the meal. What’s more, even with all this talk of sharing your love through the food you make, if you are eating by yourself, you can trust that you are never truly alone. The food becomes the means to connect you with the larger community that helped to grow your food, every meal contains the presence of so many caring people.

As I was thinking of Valentine’s Day inspired dishes for this week on the website, beyond the standard chocolate and sweets, I really sat with this idea of love and mindfulness. Slowing down and really appreciating the nourishment of food. Allowing a meal be the catalyst to connection, the means to share my heart and my love with my world, on an even deeper level.

Food is best enjoyed when we slow down. When we eat with intention and a deeper attention, both in the process of cooking, but as well as when we consume, we can nourish our minds as well as our souls. To me, eating mindfully is as important to my day as my meditation practice or my yoga. Honoring the food in front of me, becoming aware of the energy that has gone into growing and birthing the food, from the plate back to the earth (or in this case, the earth and the sea).

The way that I choose to eat, it influences everything else in my life, so it is with slow cooked, mindfully prepared meals like these, that I am truly at home, these days. In a life of busy and a time of go-go-going, I want meal time to be a place of honor and of nourishment, but I always want for the food I prepare to be a gift, for myself and for family. Whether you prepare it, someone you love or a total stranger, a lot of love and a lot of hard work is encapsulated in all of the food we eat, so I encourage you to spend time with your food and find gratitude in every bite!

I hope you find time this week and every week, to slow down, to truly honor the food in front of you, to share your love by way of nourishing meals. This  Slow Roasted Salmon with Meyer Lemon Gremolata, to me is the perfect dish to do just that. It is the best way to savor the process as well as the final product. Slow roasting allows you to access the most flavor from the salmon, it is evenly cooked, perfectly tender and not a single bit of it is at all dried out. The gremolata is a simple three ingredients, ready in minutes and it’s the perfect compliment to the salmon. Plus that color is pure beauty. It’s great for a romantic meal for two, with leftovers or perfect for a small dinner party. I rally enjoy making this for the two of us, then using the leftovers to make these Salmon Cakes.

[print_this]Slow Roasted Salmon with Meyer Lemon Gremolata {gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo}
serves 4

• 1 1/2 – 2 lb wild caught salmon filet, center cut, skin on or off, pin bones removed
• 2 tablespoons Terra Delyssa Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus a little more for greasing
• 2 meyer lemons, sliced
• several springs fresh dill, plus more for serving
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 275ºF. Let the salmon come to room temperature to 15-20 minutes. With olive oil, lighting grease a glass baking dish, baking sheet or line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place the lemon slices down in a single even layer. Place a few of the dill springs on top. Set the salmon filet over top, if skinned, skin side down. Drizzle the olive oil over top. Place a few more dill springs on top.

Roast for 30-40 minutes, until just cooked through, the flesh barely flakes, a fork inserted in the thickest part of the fish cuts through easily with no resistance and the flesh separates easily from the skin. (If the top of the fish has a slightly raw look; this is the result of the low roasting temperature. It will be cooked inside.) Remove the salmon filet and discard the lemon slices and the dill spring. Top with fresh dill springs, transfer the salmon to a platter, breaking it into large pieces as you go. Make the gremolata as the fish roasts.

This can be served warm from the oven, room temperature, or cold. Top with the gremolata.

Meyer Lemon Gremolata

• 1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves (will be about 1 cup loosely packed before minced)
• 2 organic Meyer lemons (regular lemons will also work)
• 1 large cloves garlic, peeled
• sea salt and black pepper, to taste

 

Terra Delyssa is a sponsor of Tasty Yummies. All content, ideas, and words are my own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that allow me to create new and special content like this for Tasty Yummies.