Vibrant homemade sunflower seed pesto, flaky pan-seared salmon, and crispy roasted broccoli come together in this surprisingly easy and highly satisfying meal. It's a fresh and simple crowd-pleasing take on pesto salmon, and it's ready in under 30 minutes!
Ingredients
Roasted Broccoli
1headbroccoli, cut into small florets
1teaspoonolive oil
½ teaspoonsea salt
Sunflower Seed Pesto
½ cupbasil leaves
¼ cuptoasted sunflower seeds
2tablespoonslemon juice, fresh is best
2tablespoonsolive oil
1tablespoonfresh dill
1green onion, green part only
1clovegarlic
1tablespoonmayonnaise
Salmon
1tablespoonolive oil
45-ouncesalmon filets
½ teaspoonEACH: sea salt and black pepper
Sunflower seeds and dill, to serve
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Place the broccoli on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil and salt. Put the baking sheet into the oven for 20 minutes, or until the broccoli is soft and the florets are starting to get crispy.
1 head broccoli, 1 teaspoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon sea salt
While the broccoli roasts, prepare the rest of the meal. Place all of the sunflower seed pesto ingredients into your blender or food processor and blend on high until mostly smooth. If needed, thin with a little water, starting with 1 tablespoon.
¼ cup toasted sunflower seeds, ½ cup basil leaves, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 tablespoon fresh dill, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 clove garlic, 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, 1 green onion
Dry the salmon well then season it with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large, ovenproof pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the salmon skin side down. Let the salmon cook undisturbed for 3-4 minutes, or until the skin is nice and crispy. Shake the pan a few times to help the salmon release from the pan. Once the skin is crispy, put the pan into the oven and cook the salmon for 4 minutes more.
4 5-ounce salmon filets, ½ teaspoon EACH: sea salt and black pepper, 1 tablespoon olive oil
Serve the salmon with the pesto over the top and the broccoli on the side. Sprinkle on a few sunflower seeds and dill sprigs, if you'd like.