Salmon with Herbed Bread Crumbs and Roasted Brussel Sprouts

This is an easy way to dress up salmon for a weeknight dinner. It follows my standard roasted salmon recipe, with the addition of herbed bread crumbs on top. The crumbs create a tasty crust that's a nice textural complement to the silky fish.

Preheat oven to 500 with the baking dish inside it. Rub salmon with olive oil, salt and pepper; top with bread crumbs (see below). Toss the salmon into the baking dish, skin side down, and lower heat to 275. Cook about 10 minutes, until just flaky. 

To make the bread crumbs, grind up some stale bread in the food processor with whatever fresh herbs you have on hand-- I used a mix of sage, rosemary and thyme. If you end up with a lot of bread crumbs, just put the leftovers in a jar in the freezer and use them next time.

These brussel sprouts are even easier than the salmon. They've been featured on The Purple Kitchen before, but the recipe is so simple I'll repeat it here. Just quarter the sprouts, toss with salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and roast in a 400 degree oven until golden brown, about 25 minutes. They should be crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside.