I’m sorry but these pictures just plain suck!  I am so bummed about it because the croutons turned out so cute and I was really proud of my brilliant (cornbread crouton) idea.  They had a great texture.  Just the perfect crunch for my salad!

 I hate trying to take photos with artificial light, especially since I do not have a setup for it.  And here in eastern Idaho at this time of year it seems to get dark outside at about 3PM.  To take a decent set of photos I have to try to take advantage of the daylight and who wants BBQ Salmon Salad at 10AM?

I also have a day job that literally keeps me in the dark.  At this time of year I leave for work in the dark and get home in the dark! The quality of my blog’s photography is directly proportional to my access to daylight hours. Therefore it should only get better the closer we get to summer.  We’ll see.  As for now I will just have to live with these photos and try doing as much as I can in natural light whenever I have the time.

Ingredients:

-One bag of your favorite pre-washed salad mix (I used butter lettuce)

-2 T. of your favorite ranch dressing (I used Chiz’s; next to homemade it is the best!)

-8 oz. salmon fillets

-4 to 5 Tbsp. of your favorite BBQ sauce (I used Bull’s Eye Original because it tastes pretty good and it doesn’t have any HFCS so it does not burn as easily as other bottled sauces) (OR, you can make your own)

-1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix

-1 egg

-1/3 c. milk

-cooking spray

-2 Tbsp. shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat your oven to 400° F. Line a 9” X 13” pan with parchment paper. In a small bowl combine muffin mix, milk, and the egg.  Mix well and then pour into the parchment lined pan.  Spread out evenly over the bottom of the pan.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool.

Cut out heart shapes with a small (~1 inch. Cookie cutter).  Line the same pan (to save on dishes) with foil, coated with cooking spray.  Place cornbread cut outs in pan.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and a couple of shreds of sharp cheddar cheese. Broil for ~ 1 minute until the cheese melts and the edges of the croutons turn golden brown.  Watch closely they will burn in a matter of seconds!

For Salmon place fillets in a, cooking spray coated, foil lined pan.  Sprinkle with S & P.  Drizzle with 2 Tbsp. BBQ Sauce.  Broil 4” to 6” away from the element for ~15 minutes.  Remove from oven and place into a medium bowl.  Add 2 more Tbsp. of BBQ sauce.  Stir with a fork to flake fish and combine with BBQ sauce.

For salad, toss lettuce with dressing. Split between two salad bowls.  Top each with the salmon and croutons.  EAT!!!

Servings: ~2

Calorie per serving: ~350 (not including the croutons) the croutons have about 40 calories each.

I added 5 to my salad so. 40X5=200. So with five croutons you are looking at 550 calories.  Still, not too shabby for dinner.