Loaded Sweet Potato Fries (AIP & Paleo)

I’m not really a big Super Bowl (or football) person, though I do love a good Super Bowl party, mainly for the food, time with friends, and the commercials. This year, things will be much different, since we’ve moved to the middle of New England Patriots territory & they happen to be playing in the 2017 Super Bowl. Let me tell you…. people around here take their NFL football *very* seriously.

While I might feel more inclined to cheer for a particular team this year, I’m still most excited about the food! Specifically, I’m excited about making some AIP/Paleo options to share with our new friends. Last year, I made plantain chip chicken in nugget form, cutting chicken breasts into pieces before coating them in the plantain chip crust & baking them on a rack. I also made the red sangria mocktail from The Healing Kitchen, and some amazing paleo brownies from Joshua Weissman/Slim Palate (the brownies require an egg & chocolate reintro; I also subbed coconut oil for the butter). All super delicious. (haha, pun intended!)

I’m still debating exactly what I’ll take to this year’s party, but these loaded sweet potato fries are a serious contender. I first made them on a whim last summer for one of our burger nights & they were such a fun twist on normal sweet potato fries. Plus the arugula pesto they’re topped with adds some extra veggie power.

If you’re looking for some other party food ideas, whether for yourself or to share with others, here are a few more options:

• Paloma Mocktail/Cocktail (AIP) or Cocktail (Paleo)  
• Red Sangria (AIP)  
• Chicken Liver Pate (AIP)  
• Marinated Flank Steak (AIP)  
• Bacon & Prosciutto Wrapped Dates (AIP)  
• Plantain Chip Chicken (AIP)  
• Blood Orange Gummies (AIP)  
• Simple Guac (AIP)  
• Coconut Macaroons (AIP) 

Loaded Sweet Potato Fries (AIP & Paleo) 
Yields 2 generous servings; batch can be easily doubled or tripled for a larger group 

For the Fries:
1 pound white sweet potatoes (I prefer Hannah)
28 g (2 tablespoons) duck fat, melted
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Preheat the oven to 425 F. 
2. Wash and cut the sweet potato into thin fry-shaped pieces, 1/4 to 1/2 inch in width. 
3. Pour the melted duck fat into a bowl, add the sweet potato fries, and toss to coat. 
4. Arrange the fries on an un-lined rimmed baking sheet (I used a quarter sheet), making sure there is a little space between each fry. Dust the fries with sea salt & garlic powder.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and carefully flip the fries over. Roast for an additional 10 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. While the fries are roasting, prepare the toppings (see below). 

To Assemble: 
1 batch of sweet potato fries (see above)
2 tablespoons arugula pesto, plus additional for dipping, if desired
3 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 tablespoon thinly sliced scallion
1 to 2 teaspoons cilantro leaves
sprinkling of smoked Maldon sea salt

1. Just before serving, drizzle the roasted sweet potato fries with the arugula pesto. Top with the crumbled bacon, sliced scallion, and cilantro leaves. Sprinkle with smoked Maldon to taste. Serve with additional arugula pesto for dipping, if desired. 

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Chicken Liver Pate (AIP, Paleo, Low FODMAP)

If someone had told me two years ago that I’d not only like liver pâté, but my body would crave it, I would have thought that person was crazy. But it’s true. Not only am I consuming chicken liver pâté, but I’m making it myself, which is true dedication for this former vegetarian.

I didn’t have a lot of trouble when it came to the concept of eating offal, especially something as mild as chicken liver pâté, but I did have a bit of a hang up on making it myself. Last November, I finally found the courage to consider making pâté. I bought a package of chicken livers, only to chicken out (ha!) & have them go bad in the fridge before I could make the pâté. The second time, I finally convinced myself to go ahead and make my friend Martine’s pâté recipe. While I didn’t love the process of working with raw liver, the results were delicious & I found my body craving the pâté on the days I wasn’t eating it. Perhaps the high nutrient density of the liver has something to do with that (read more about liver & organ meat here)

I have made pâté fairly regularly over the next few months, even traveling with it when I’d go on trips. But this summer, when I found myself needing to go low FODMAP for SIBO, I fell off the pâté bandwagon. I loved Martine’s pâté recipe, but it had all sorts of ingredients that I needed to eliminate, like onions, garlic & mushrooms and I was concerned I wouldn’t like pâté once I took out those key ingredients.

As I was grocery shopping a few weeks ago, I found a large display of organic chicken livers & my body immediately started craving pâté again! It seemed perhaps time to start experimenting on a low(er) FODMAP pâté recipe. I’ve been fortunate to begin adding back in some higher FODMAP foods, like the apples in some of these images, but I wanted to keep the pâté base on the lower FODMAP side. Three of my favorite ingredients came to the rescue: bacon, leek greens & garlic oil. My first attempt was much more delicious than I anticipated, and there were many people over on Instagram who also seemed interested in a low FODMAP pâté recipe, so I’m sharing it here.  

Spreading the pâté on cucumbers or plantain chips is my favorite low FODMAP methods of eating it. If you’ve reintroduced some FODMAPs, I also really like apple slices, celery sticks, & homemade herb crackers (you can find that recipe in my new e-book “AIP & Paleo Holiday Sweet Treats”).

Note on FODMAPs: FODMAPs are confusing things... Certain resources will say that one item is “ok” and other resources will list that item as “avoid.” I am choosing to get my information about FODMAPs from Monash University & their app. Monash is continually updating their information & they are great about listing what quantity of food (both by volume & by weight) keeps it within the low FODMAP guidelines. As always, though, you know your body best. Just because one list says a food is fine, doesn’t always mean your body will be fine with it. Or on the flip side, just because one list says a food is on the avoid list, doesn’t mean your body is automatically going to be bothered by it. Do what makes your body & mind feel the best. 

Chicken Liver Pâté

Yields 5-4oz jars

4 strips of Bacon

110 g (1 1/2 cup) Leek Greens

1 lb Organic Chicken Livers, rinsed 

1 tablespoon Garlic Olive Oil

1/2 cup Red Wine (I used Cabernet Sauvignon) 

1 teaspoon Thyme, dried

1/2 teaspoon Parsley, dried

1/2 teaspoon Sage, ground

1 each Bay Leaf

4 tablespoons Bone Broth

1 tablespoon fresh Parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped

1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt 

1. In a large non-reactive skillet (i.e. stainless steel, not cast iron), brown the bacon over medium high heat. Once the bacon is cooked through, remove from the pan (reserving for later), but keep the grease in the skillet.
2. Add the leek greens to the hot pan & briefly sauté. Move the greens off to the side & add the chicken livers. Drizzle the garlic olive oil over the livers. Cook for 4 minutes, or until brown on one side. 
3. Flip the livers over, add the wine & dried herbs. Stir to combine. Cover the pan & reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the lid & cook an additional 3 minutes. The alcohol cooks off during this process, making it safe for AIP. 
4. Add the liver mixture to a large food processor, along with the cooked bacon, bone broth, fresh herbs & salt. Puree until smooth, scraping the sides of the food processor as needed. Taste & add additional salt, if needed. 
5. Portion into small cups (I like to use 4 oz mason jars). Chill in the refrigerator until cold. Consume within 4 days, or freeze for longevity. A word of caution, the pâté may become a bit more grainy & firm once frozen & thawed, but it still tastes great. 
6. Serve the pâté with veggies (I like cucumbers best) or fruit (I like apples, though they are a higher FODMAP food that I have successfully reintroduced) or homemade AIP crackers.

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Roasted Green Beans with Bacon (AIP Reintroduction, Paleo, Low FODMAP, Whole30)

Perhaps never have I been so excited about a vegetable as I was about reintroducing green beans after my AIP Reset this past summer, especially since I was doing AIP + low FODMAP (and green beans are low FODMAP). Now that we’ve reached November, with important holidays, like Thanksgiving & Christmas, on the horizon, I’ve got green beans back on the brain. Oh, and that sweet potato casserole you see in some of the images? It's completely AIP & I'm sharing the recipe for it in next week’s post ;)

Because I spent a decade eating a mostly vegetarian diet, I ate a lot of side dishes at major holiday dinners. Green bean casserole was usually a staple (and one of my favorites). I’d love to concoct my own paleo/AIP reintroduction version of a green bean casserole, and perhaps someday I will, but for now, I’m way way more of a fan of speedy side dishes. A meal like Thanksgiving requires much more preparation than a “normal” meal & there are precious few shortcuts available. These green beans have almost zero hands-on preparation time (dump, drizzle, toss, sprinkle, & roast), though they still look and taste quite fancy when they’re finished.

One of my secrets when it comes to making side dishes, holiday or just regular dinner, is to embrace frozen organic vegetables. They require less hands-on preparation, I don’t have to worry about their shelf life like fresh veggies, and they’re delicious if prepared correctly. I still can’t stomach frozen-then-microwaved Normandy vegetable blend, due to poor childhood memories (sorry, Mom!), so most often, I roast frozen veggies. Something magical happens when vegetables are roasted: the flavor mellows & becomes more toasty/caramelized with such minimal effort. Usually, husband and I stand over the pan of freshly roasted vegetables & fight over eating the most crispy (what some might call “burnt”) pieces.

I’ve been roasting green beans with oil & coconut aminos for a while, but I only recently started adding some bacon to them. No, bacon does not make *everything* better, but somehow, adding a little chopped bacon to the pan of green beans helps make them feel a little more special. Please feel free to leave the bacon off if you want this dish to also appeal to any vegetarian/vegan guests you may have.

Additionally, most roasted vegetables, including these green beans, can be prepared in advance & reheated just before serving. They won’t be quite as crispy as freshly roasted but nevertheless delicious. When making these beans for a crowd, make more than you’ll think you may need. All vegetable shrink pretty dramatically during roasting! In fact, husband and I usually split a 16 oz bag (pre-roasted) of beans between the two of us as side dish for dinner.

A note on reintroducing green beans: green beans were once a “gray area” food, but since the publication of “The Paleo Approach” by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, it is now recommended that legumes with edible pods, such as green beans and green peas, be eliminated for at least 30 days.  Once the 30 days are complete & you see significant reduction (better yet elimination) of any symptoms, green beans are considered a stage 1 reintroduction. If you’re interested in reintroducing green beans to hopefully include on a  Thanksgiving menu, I recommend trying them out a couple weeks before the holiday itself. Just in case you’d happen to have a reaction to them, it’s better to know before a major holiday! If you’re interested in more in depth information about reintroductions, check out these resources (here and here).

Roasted Green Beans with Bacon (AIP Stage 1 Reintroduction, Paleo, Low FODMAP)
Yields 4 servings for a regular meal, or 6-8 holiday meal servings (if there are other side dishes) 

2-16 oz Organic French-style Green Beans
1/4 c Avocado Oil (or other melted fat of choice)
2 Tbl Coconut Aminos
2 strips of bacon, cut into small pieces
Smoked Sea Salt, optional for serving.

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Lightly grease a rimmed baking sheet (Half Sheet Pan size), with a little of the avocado oil. 
2. Open both bags of green beans & dump them onto the sheet pan. Drizzle with the remaining oil & coconut aminos  Toss lightly to combine. Sprinkle the bacon over the top (I usually use kitchen scissors to cut the bacon right over the sheet pan). 
3. Roast for 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven & stir. Return to the oven for an additional 20-30 minutes, or until well caramelized. 
4. Serve with a sprinkle of smoked salt, if desired, though the bacon & coconut aminos do have a good amount of salt already. 
5. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator. 

Notes:

• Remove the bacon to make the dish vegetarian/vegan & make sure to use a vegetarian/vegan oil. 
• To make coconut free, omit the coconut aminos, though the flavor will change slightly. 
• I have only tried this dish with frozen green beans, not with fresh, mostly because I rarely have the time to prepare fresh green beans. 
• I prefer to use french-style green beans because their smaller surface area allows them to roast faster. You can also use regular cut green beans or haricot verts, but the roasting process may take longer. 

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Spaghetti Squash Carbonara (Paleo, Low FODMAP, AIP Reintroduction, Whole30)

After my Autoimmune Protocol reset, which I began in July, I was a little more selective in my reintroduction process decisions than I was during my initial AIP adventure. It is perfectly normal to wait longer than 30 days to reintroduce foods, but since I was also combining AIP with low FODMAP diet, I was concerned that perhaps my diet was too limited for longterm health. Remember, neither AIP nor low FODMAP diets are meant to be followed forever. Sure, elimination diets are really important for the process of figuring out things your body may or may not tolerate, but once you experience elimination of symptoms & gut healing, it is a good idea to add back items as your body allows. Not only can it increase your nutrient sources, more variety can have a profound psychological effect & make going out to eat or socializing with friends much easier. 

For this second round of reintroductions, egg yolks and green beans were the first two items I decided to reintroduce. Why did I chose egg yolks? (We’ll leave the discussion of green beans for a future post) Egg yolks are really nutrient dense, full of good fat-soluble vitamins and a plethora of minerals. Plus eggs are a great source of choline, which is something my integrative doctor discovered I’m deficient in. Choline is also important for methylation, and because I am heterozygus for a couple of the MTHFR gene mutations, I just happen to need some extra help with methylation. Sorry if I just went way, way too technical, but I believe it is important to concentrate on nutrient density and the “whys.”

For actually incorporating the yolks into my diet, making a paleo-ified carbonara has been my go-to dish. Plus, who doesn’t love a meal that reminiscent of pasta! Traditional carbonara features and egg yolks, cheese (usually parmigiano-oregiano, or pecorino romano), bacon or pancetta, and pasta. To keep things within paleo parameters & my personal food sensitivities, I used pastured, soy-free egg yolks, omitted the cheese, kept the bacon & substituted cooked spaghetti squash for the pasta noodles. In addition, because I’m all about adding nutrient density wherever possible, I added some chopped scallion (green parts only, to keep it low FODMAP), chicken thighs (for protein), and flat-leaf parsley. We’ve enjoyed this dish so much that I’ve made it almost weekly.

If you’re interested in more information about the AIP reintroduction process, this reintroduction guide from Eileen at Phoenix Helix is a great resource. Eileen’s podcast “The Phoneix Helix Podcast” also has an episode about reintroductions. Or Sarah Ballantyne has written about the process in her book, The Paleo Approach, and in this article.  

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

yields two generous servings

4 strips Bacon

4 medium chicken thighs, organic/pastured preferred

60 g (approximately 1 1/3 c) Chopped Scallions, just the green parts if you’re watching FODMAPs

380 g (approximately 2 3/4 c) Cooked Spaghetti Squash (see notes below) 

2 tsp Garlic Flavored Olive Oil

3 ea Egg Yolks, pastured & soy free preferred, separated while still cold 

4 Tbl Coconut Milk

1/2 tsp Sea Salt

2 Tbl Chopped Parsley

1. In a large skillet (cast-iron preferred), fry bacon over medium heat. If not using a cast iron skillet, use a little bit of oil in the bottom of the pan, as needed.  Set aside. 
2. Cook the chicken thighs over medium heat in residual bacon grease. Chicken takes approximately 10 minutes on medium heat, or until reaches an internal temp of 160 F. Set aside to cool slightly & then cut the chicken in to cubes. 
3. In the same skillet, briefly sauté the scallion. Add the spaghetti squash & garlic oil. Add some additional olive oil (or other fat of choice) if the ingredients begin to stick. 
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the yolks, & coconut milk. 
5. Pour the yolks/milk into the skillet, over the scallion & spaghetti squash. Stir constantly & continue cooking for a minute or two, until the squash begins to absorb some of the sauce--we’re not trying to make scrambled eggs. 
6. Remove from the heat. Add half of the bacon, cubed chicken & parsley. Toss together to combine. 
7. Divide between two plates & add the remaining bacon, chicken & parsley. 
8. Serve immediately. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator. 

Notes:

• To cook the spaghetti squash for this recipe, I prefer to use my Instant Pot. 
• Alternately, you can also cook the squash in an oven or in a microwave (note: black pepper is not AIP)
• For longer strands of spaghetti squash, check out this ingenious tutorial!! 

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Bacon Maple Salmon & "He Won't Know It's Paleo" review + Giveaway (AIP & Paleo)

Full disclosure: I did receive a free copy of this book in e-book format, but I liked it so much that I’ve already purchased a print copy for my mom to use in her AIP journey. This post may also contain affiliate links, meaning I will receive a small amount of compensation for any items purchased via those links. All opinions are my own & I wouldn’t recommend a book or product I didn’t personally use or love. 

I’ve also been given an extra copy of the e-book to give to one of my readers! 

Check the bottom of the post for additional details. 

UPDATE: the giveaway is now CLOSED! Thanks to all who entered :)

The past week, I’ve felt a bit like Julie from Julie & Julia, the woman who cooked her way through Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Now, I didn’t cook my way through an entire cookbook, but I did spend nearly a week making most all of our meals from the newest AIP Cookbook He Won't Know It's Paleo by Bre’anna Emmitt. I don’t normally cook as much from cookbooks or recipes anymore. I often am developing my own recipes & just winging it & hopping for the best (note: this winging it technique really does *not* work for AIP baked goods.... Trust me, I’ve tried...). But it was very refreshing to have all the recipes done for me. 

I “know” Bre’anna through social media interactions & I’ve been excitedly awaiting this cookbook. It absolutely did not disappoint! The e-book itself is beautiful. As I sat down with my iPad and a notebook to mark which recipes I wanted to make & develop a meal plan/grocery list, I had a really hard time narrowing down what to recipes to make because everything looked so tasty! I appreciate how approachable all of the recipes are. They use a variety of ingredients that are both very tasty & good for you, but they aren’t too fussy or complex. And there’s enough diversity that a person isn’t constantly relying on the same proteins or veggies. One note, we did find the portion sizes/recipe yields on a few of the recipes to be a bit small, but that could also be because we tend to eat a pretty high volume of food these days.

As a whole, I definitely believe this book lives up to its name. All the recipes we tried could definitely be served to non-AIP/Paleo people and I don’t think they would feel deprived at all! We certainly weren’t.  Here’s what we ate: 

Dinner 1

Nightshade free red salsa

Queso

Stacked Chicken Enchiladas Verdes 

I’ve been sorely missing salsa & Mexican foods. I really didn’t think I’d ever be able to eat salsa again (nightshades and I are really, really not friends...) While we enjoyed both the queso & the salsa, the salsa was the big star! I was almost immediately lamenting the fact that I didn’t have ingredients to make a second batch, since we, you know, ate almost the entire batch in one sitting (oops!).   We also liked the enchiladas with the salsa on top. I thought there was very little chance I would ever be able to eat anything remotely resembling Mexican food, so I’m greatly thankful to Bre’anna for developing these genius recipes.

Dinner 2

Stuffed Mushrooms

Bacon sautéed Asparagus

Peach braised short ribs/beef shanks

I was not prepared for how wonderful the mushrooms were! Delicious! They’d be a great item to take to a party. Asparagus is one of my favorite veggies & paring it with bacon is a terrific match. Loved the peach braising liquid too--such a nice break from the braises I’ve done with either wine or broth. Peach added a nice tang. I did have to make a couple substitutions in this recipe: I used beef shanks in place of the short ribs because I couldn’t find grass-fed short ribs. I also don’t have a working crock pot at the moment, so I used a Le Creuset dutch oven & baked the entire mixture at 300 for 4 hours, which may have been a bit much as they all fell a part. At least that meant they were very tender. Next time, I’ll bake them for a little less time. Also, the leftovers were fantastic! 

Lunch 1

Chicken Salad using Egg-free Mayo

While the book does include a chicken salad recipe, I didn’t have all the necessary ingredients on hand. Instead, I made my own version, still inspired by Bre’anna’s recipe, using her egg-free mayo recipe, plus diced apple, celery, scallions, and apple juice sweetened craisins. Mayo is a hard condiment to replicate, especially when eggs are not allowed, but I think her egg-free recipe comes as close as one can get while still remaining fully AIP compliant. 

Dinner 3

Scalloped Sweet Potatoes

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Cranberries

Maple Bacon Salmon

The salmon was fantastic! Technically, it comes from the “breakfast” category of the book, but we loved it for dinner too. I usually roast brussels & was a bit skeptical about sautéing them, but they turned out great too. I found apple juice sweetened cranberries at Whole Foods last fall & used them in the recipe. I tried using three different varieties of sweet potatoes in the scalloped sweet, but may just stick to white ones in the future. My husband saw the spread of all the food when I was photographing it and he was like “oh wow! Do we get to eat this for dinner tonight?” We also enjoyed eating the leftovers for future meals. 

Brunch 

Tropical Green Smoothie

Breakfast Sausage

Sweet Potato Hash Browns (we used Hannah variety white sweet potatoes) 

My husband and I prepared this brunch feast together on a Saturday morning. It was nice to mix it up from our normal routine of breakfast hash. Ironically, I’d never made sausage before, but it was so easy (and tasty) that I foresee making it often in the future. To ensure we got some veggies & fruit with our meat and carbs, we split some of the tropical green smoothie. It was a well balanced, satisfying, tasty brunch that fueled us through until much later in the day. 

Dinner 4

Red Wine & Shallot Bison Burgers

On Saturday nights, we’ve developed a tradition of cooking dinner together & renting a movie to watch as a sort of pseudo “date-night.” These bison burgers were perfect date-night food. Their hint of red wine flavor made them feel more special than a regular burger. I toped them with shallots that I fried in palm oil & a simple arugula salad. We ate dinner off our fine china, just for fun :) Husband indulged in a glass of red wine with his meal (hey, the bottle was already open from making the burgers), and I chose a glass of blood orange kombucha. 

Treats

While we loved all the meals from this book, we also really, really loved the treats! My will power around treats has vastly improved since going AIP last spring, but I do know that I shouldn’t make so many treats in such a short amount of time because I am very likely going to eat more of them than I ought to :) But that is also a testament to their deliciousness.

Blackberry Cobbler

The cobbler was a great not-too-sweet dessert that still really satisfied.  I did use frozen berries, so it was perhaps a bit juicier, but still fantastic. I even ate some leftover cobbler for breakfast the following day.... Would love to use the cobbler topping with a variety of other in-season fruits too? Especially peaches.

Snickerdoodles

I loooove snickerdoodles & all my self-control leaves around them (especially since they are bite sized). They were a little soft the first day, but were much more firm the following morning. Definitely a keeper recipe.

 Banana Bread Bars with Dairy-Free Butter: 

Loved the concept of baking in the 9x13 pan & cutting into “slices.” Genius! Also, this recipe does not rely on gelatin eggs, making it also a good vegan recipe too. The only draw back to the 9x13 pan is that there are not as many servings. Oh well, next time, I’ll make a double batch! I grew up eating banana bread spread with margarine, so I couldn’t resist spreading a little dairy-free butter on top of one slice, though honestly, I probably prefer the bread on it’s own.

Coconut Cream Pie with Graham Pie Crust

This is probably my favorite AIP dessert recipe of anything that I’ve tried! It tasted so NORMAL--very similar to regular coconut cream pie. The filling was positively AMAZING!! I had some leftover that didn’t fit in my pie shell & I kept sneaking bites of it out of the refrigerator. I topped ours with my coconut whipped cream & a sprinkle of toasted coconut. I fully intend to make this pie again for our anniversary in May, where in remembrance of our coconut wedding cake, we always eat coconut desserts :) 

Bre’anna has graciously allowed me to share the Bacon Maple Salmon recipe & she’s also given me a copy of the e-book for one my readers. To enter the giveaway, simply like Sweet Treats on Facebook and my Instagram feed & leave a comment on this post. The winner will be announced on Monday, March 30th! May the odds be ever in your favor! 

Bacon Maple Salmon

recipe by Bre’anna Emmitt 

re-published, with permission, from He Won't Know It's Paleo

Yield: 4 servings

4 salmon filets

2 Tbl Maple Syrup

2 Tbl Balsamic Vinegar

1/2 tsp Dried Rubbed Sage 

4 slices bacon, each torn into two pieces 

1. The night before serving, place salmon filets, maple syrup, and balsamic vinegar in a sealed container in the refrigerator to marinate. Gently shake to mix liquid and coat salmon.  
2. In the morning, preheat the oven to 425 F. Grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
3. Arrange the salmon filets on a baking sheet. if not marinated, Mix the balsamic vinegar and maple syrup in a small dish. Brush or drizzle onto the salmon filets. 
4. Lay two halves of bacon slices lengthwise on top of each fillet. Sprinkle all the filets evenly with the sage. 
5. Place the baking sheet in the third of the oven closest to the heat sources and bake for 15 minutes until the center of the salmon is flaky and opaque. Serve hot. 

Notes from Laura:

• Use wild-caught salmon whenever possible
• Use Grade B, real maple syrup, NOT pancake syrup
• I substituted fresh sage because I didn’t have dried
• Because I made the salmon for dinner instead of breakfast, I started the marinating the process mid-morning. 

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