Healthy sheet pan salmon baked in a lemon garlic paprika sauce, served with roasted root vegetables, kale, quinoa, and dilly avocado sauce is the perfect wholesome family dinner. Serve everything up in a bowl for a great weeknight supper.
Don’t the colours of this bowl make you happy? I live for this time of the year, with the vibrant and sweet root vegetables finally at their peak, and hardy vegetables like kale, cabbage, chard, and collards still going strong. Every time I go to pick up my CSA veggie basket, I am in awe at Mother Nature’s bounty. It’s amazing how much food can be grown on just a few acres of organically cultivated land. I have so much appreciation for our organic farmers and the earth, really.
These bowls are inspired by the season. Salmon baked on a sheet pan in a flavourful garlicky smoked paprika lemon sauce is the protein, roasted beets, sweet potatoes, and quinoa are the carbs, and a swoop of dilly avocado sauce provides some extra healthy fats. (Well, so does the salmon- salmon has lots of omega 3s, while avocado has plenty of healthy monounsaturated fat and vitamin E.) And then there’s some simple massaged kale for a dose of green goodness. Yum, yum.
All in all, this makes a great meal to enjoy any night of the week. Yes, it does have a few components, but it all comes together rather quickly, in about 45 minutes. If you want to make things even simpler, leave out the beets and sweet potatoes for a super quick supper that will be on the table in under 30 minutes.
ingredients you’ll need:
For the lemon paprika salmon:
- Wild salmon
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Lemons
- Garlic
- Sea salt
- Pepper
- Smoked paprika
- Dill
- Hot red pepper flakes
- Tamari
- Maple syrup
- Whole grain mustard
For the roasted root vegetables:
- Beets
- Sweet Potatoes
For the dilly avocado sauce
- Avocados
- Lemons
- Garlic
- Sea salt
- Pepper
- Dill
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Water
- Nutritional yeast or parmesan/pecorino cheese
For the kale:
- Kale
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Lemon juice
- Sea salt
For serving:
- Cooked quinoa, rice, or bread (optional, but I always like to serve a grain with my meals- it makes them so much more satisfying and grounding.)
how to make this sheet pan lemon paprika salmon dinner:
Start by preparing the salmon. Ideally, you’ll let this marinate for at least 30 minutes, but if you don’t have the time, not to worry. It’ll still be tasty. Slice the salmon into 4 equal filets. Place them in a baking dish (or just straight onto a sturdy large rimmed baking sheet if you don’t have time to marinate them). In a bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, fresh dill, hot red pepper flakes, tamari, maple syrup, and mustard. Spoon half of it over the salmon and reserve the other half for later. Marinate for 30 minutes, if possible. When ready to bake, transfer onto a large rimmed baking sheet.
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Preheat the oven to 425 F. Grab a second large rimmed baking sheet and line with parchment paper. Place the chopped beet on one half of the baking sheet and the chopped sweet potato on the other half. (I keep them separate so that the beets don’t stain the sweet potatoes purple.) Drizzle the beet with ¾ tablespoon of the oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Repeat with the sweet potato. Place in the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes, or until tender.
Cook the salmon. Arrange a few lemon slices around the salmon, if desired. Bake for 10-20 minutes, until the salmon flakes easily with a fork.
Meanwhile, make the avocado sauce. Place the avocados, lemon juice, garlic. salt, dill, olive oil, water, and nutritional yeast or cheese in a food processor. Process until smooth. Transfer into an airtight container until ready to eat.
Prepare the kale: Place the kale in a bowl. Drizzle with the oil and lemon juice and add a pinch of salt. Massage the oil and lemon into the kale using your hands. Alternatively, you can steam the plain kale and add a drizzle of oil and lemon to garnish, right before serving.
Serve: Divide everything up between bowls or plates, and enjoy!
Note: The avocado sauce makes more than you’ll need, so feel free to make a half batch! I like having leftover sauce on hand in the fridge, though. (This particular sauce is really tasty on pasta!) And because there’s a good amount of lemon in it, the sauce retains its colour for a few days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
more healthy bowl recipes for fall
- Nut Parmesan-Crusted Squash, Chickpea, + Kale Bowls with Avocado Sauce
- Black Bean and Delicata Squash Burrito Bowls
- Black Lentil Walnut Meatball Bowls
- Roasted Root Vegetable Chickpea Bowls with Nutritional Yeast Dressing
Finally, I hope that you love this Sheet Pan Salmon with Dilly Avocado Sauce and Roasted Root Vegetables! If you make it, let me know how you enjoyed it by leaving a comment and rating below the post. And if you share a photo to Instagram, tag it @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen. I love seeing what you’ve made.
Enjoy!
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Sheet Pan Lemon Paprika Salmon with Dilly Avocado Sauce and Roasted Root Vegetables
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Healthy sheet pan salmon baked in a lemon garlic paprika sauce, served with roasted root vegetables, kale, quinoa, and dilly avocado sauce is the perfect wholesome family dinner. Serve everything up in a bowl for a great weeknight supper.
Ingredients
Lemon Paprika Salmon
- 1 pound wild salmon
- 1 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- ¼ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
- ½ tablespoon tamari
- ½ tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 heaping teaspoon whole grain mustard
- ½ of a lemon, sliced, seeds removed
Roasted Root Vegetables
- 1 large beet, peeled and chopped into ½-inch cubes
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped into ½-inch cubes
- 1 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Pinch each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Dilly Avocado Sauce
- 2 ripe avocados, pitted, flesh scooped out
- Juice of 1–2 lemons (to taste)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ¾–1 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ cup fresh dill, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons water
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast or parmesan/pecorino cheese
Kale
- 1 bunch of kale, chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Juice of half a lemon
- Pinch of sea salt
For Serving
- Cooked quinoa, brown rice, or bread + butter
Instructions
- Start by preparing the salmon. Ideally, you’ll let this marinate for at least 30 minutes, but if you don’t have the time, not to worry. It’ll still be tasty. Slice the salmon into 4 equal filets. Place them in a baking dish (or just straight onto a sturdy large rimmed baking sheet if you don’t have time to marinate them). In a bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, fresh dill, hot red pepper flakes, tamari, maple syrup, and mustard. Spoon half of it over the salmon and reserve the other half for later. Marinate for 30 minutes, if possible. When ready to bake, transfer onto a large rimmed baking sheet.
- Preheat the oven to 425 F. Grab a second large rimmed baking sheet and line with parchment paper. Place the chopped beet on one half of the baking sheet and the chopped sweet potato on the other half. (I keep them separate so that the beets don’t stain the sweet potatoes purple.) Drizzle the beet with ¾ tablespoon of the oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Repeat with the sweet potato. Place in the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes, or until tender.
- Cook the salmon. Arrange a few lemon slices around the salmon, if desired. Bake for 10-20 minutes, until the salmon flakes easily with a fork. In the last five minutes or so, add the remaining marinade.
- Meanwhile, make the avocado sauce. Place the avocados, lemon juice, garlic. salt, dill, olive oil, water, and nutritional yeast or cheese in a food processor. Process until smooth. Transfer into an airtight container until ready to eat.
- Prepare the kale: Place the kale in a bowl. Drizzle with the oil and lemon juice and add a pinch of salt. Massage the oil and lemon into the kale using your hands. Alternatively, you can steam the plain kale and add a drizzle of oil and lemon to garnish, right before serving.
- Serve: Divide everything up between bowls or plates.
Notes
Note: The avocado sauce makes more than you’ll need, so feel free to make a half batch! I like having leftover sauce on hand in the fridge, though. (This particular sauce is really tasty on pasta!) And because there’s a good amount of lemon in it, the sauce retains its colour for a few days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
If you want to make a vegan meal, replace the salmon with 1 pound of tofu or tempeh. You can still marinate it and bake it as written.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Main Course
Matt says
Really good meal.
Allison says
Thank you!