Slow Roasted Salmon with Citrus and Fennel

Today, I'm bringing you a beautiful and delicious salmon dish. While I love the idea of serving it for Valentine's Day, it's really easy enough to recreate any day of the week. Why do you need a made-up commercial holiday as an excuse to make a great meal?

All this recipe takes is a little bit of time. It just requires some upfront vegetable slicing, and then you place the salmon in the oven and let it slowly roast.

This is a great Valentine's Day dinner recipe--it seems fancy and elegant (salmon! roasted citrus! fennel!) but it really is simple to make, allowing you to spend more time with that certain someone. It also feels special--out of the ordinary--from the typical dinner routine. The salmon looks best when it's perfectly imperfect, so you don't have to worry about making it look picture perfect.

Zach and I are forgoing restaurants this Valentine's Day and you should too. I guarantee this salmon dinner is better than the prix-fixe menu with overdone steak. Pop open a bottle of wine, starting preparing some citrus, and enjoy the night in with your love!

Slow Roasted Salmon with Citrus and Fennel

From Bon Appetit 

Serves 6

1 medium fennel bulb, thinly slice

1 blood orange or navel orange, thinly sliced and seeds removed

1 Meyer or regular lemon, thinly sliced and seeds removed

1 red Fresno chile or jalapeño, thinly sliced

4 sprigs of dill, plus more for serving

Kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 2-lb skinless salmon fillet, preferable center cut

3/4 cup olive oil

Flaky sea salt

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Toss fennel, orange slices, lemon slices, jalapeño, and dill together in a shallow baking dish. Season with kosher salt and pepper.

Season salmon with kosher salt and place on top of fennel and citrus mixture. Pour oil over the entire dish.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until salmon is just cooked through (the flesh will be opaque).

Transfer salmon to a large platter, breaking the fillet into large pieces. Spoon fennel and citrus mixture over the salmon. Discard cooked dill sprigs and add fresh dill. Season with flaky sea salt and more pepper.

Enjoy!