Category: salads

Panzanella with Shrimp and Fennel

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Great summer salad! Adapted from Lidia Bastianich’s Celebrate Like an Italian.

 

Panzanella with Shrimp and Fennel

  • Servings: 4 to 6
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 1 1-2 day old bread cut into cubes, (about 6 cups)
  • 3 beefsteak tomatoes
  • 1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and slice thinly
  • 1 bunch scallion, white and green parts chopped
  • 1/2 English cucumber, sliced into half-moons
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled ad deveined

 

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet, and toast until crisp but not browned. About 7 minutes. Let cool.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, fennel, scallions, and cucumber. Sprinkle the vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Toss well.  Add the bread cubes, toss to soak in the vinegar. Drizzle with the 1/2 cup of olive oil. Set aside.
  3. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to large skillet over high heat. Add the shrimp and season with salt. Cook until the shrimp is cooked through for about 3 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes.
  4. Add the shrimp to the salad and toss well.

 

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Poached Salmon Salad

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A fantastic salad for the summer! It would also make a nice presentation on a buffet table.  Adapted from Lidia Bastiniach’s Celebrate Like an Italian cookbook.

 

Poached Salmon Salad

  • Servings: 6 as a main course, 8 as an appetizer
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

Salmon

  • Kosher salt
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 1 lemon, sliced
  • 1 handful sprigs fresh dill
  • 2 fresh bay leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon back peppercorns
  • 2 pounds center-cut salmon fillets

 

Salad

  • 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for cooking water
  • 2 bunches medium-thick asparagus, trimmed, and peeled (about 2 pounds)
  • 2 hard-boiled eggs, yolks and whites separated
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons white wine
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons grated fresh horseradish
  • 1 1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

 

Directions

  1. For the salmon, put 6 cups of water in a straight-sided skillet enough to hold the salmon in one layer. Season the water liberally with salt, and add wine, lemon slices, dill, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Then slide the salmon into the simmering  water. Simmer gently for about another 10 minutes or until the salmon is cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside to cool.
  2.   For the salad, bring another large pot of salted water to a boil, and add the asparagus. Simmer till tender, abut 8 minutes. Drain, cool under cold water and pat dry. Spread the asparagus on a serving platter.
  3. In a food processor, combine the egg yolks, mustard, white wine, lemon juice, teaspoon of salt and the horseradish. Combine to thick paste and and drizzle in the olive with the machine is still on for a thick dressing.
  4. Drizzle a few tablespoons of the dressing over the asparagus. Flake the salmon in large chunks  into a large bowl. Chop the egg whites and add to the bowl along with the radishes and dill.  Season with the remaining salt. Drizzle with the rest of the dressing, toss well and serve over the asparagus.

 

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Wasabi Grilled Tuna with Couscous

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Another great seafood recipe from Fresh Fish by Jennifer Trainer Thompson! The wasabi sauce was so good that I spooned over the tuna. The couscous was a great side dish on a hot summer day.

 

Wasabi Grilled Tuna with Couscous

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 4 (6 to 8 ounces) excellent-quality tuna steaks, 1 inch thick
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • salt and freshly ground pepper

Wasabi Sauce

  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons wasabi powder

Couscous

  • 1 cup whole-wheat Israeli couscous
  • 1 1/4 cup vegetable stock or water
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 scallion finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon small capers
  • 3 tablespoons chopped basil leaves
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • salt and freshly ground pepper

 

Directions

  1. To prepare the couscous: Toast half the couscous in a dry skillet over medium heat. Bring the stock to a boil in a medium pot, stir in the couscous, cover and simmer over low heat until the stock is absorbed and the couscous is tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork and set aside.
  2. Put the tomatoes, scallions, capers, and basil in a serving bowl. Stir in the couscous. Whisk the garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl and pour over the couscous. Toss to combine.
  3. To prepare the sauce: Whisk the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, honey, sesame oil, and the wasabi powder in a small bowl. Taste, and add more wasabi if desired.
  4. Lightly rub the tuna steaks with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the tuna on a very hot grill 1 to 2 minutes per side depending on preference. Should be pink or red in center.

 

 

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Lemon Mojo

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A very light and refreshing potato salad. The recipe can be easily doubled for summer barbecues. Six lemons seems like an awful lot but it requires that you peel and remove the white pith and then separate it from the membrane. Adapted from Rustic Spanish from Paul Richardson.

 

Lemon Mojo

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 6 lemons, plus thin slices for garnish
  • 2 green onions, white and pale green parts only, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 sprigs flat leaf parsley, minced
  • 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
  • up to 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

 

Directions

  1. In a saucepan, bring 2 inches of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes, reduce the heat to medium-high, and cook the till tender 6 to 8 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water until cool and set aside.
  2. Peel the lemons, remove the yellow skin and white pith. Slice along each segment to free it from the surrounding membrane. Coarsely chop the lemon flesh and put into salad bowl. Add the potatoes, bell pepper, green onions, garlic, and parsley.
  3. Cut the eggs in half length-wise. Gently pop out the yolks and put them in a mortar and pestle. Add the olive oil and pound to create a thick sauce. Season generously with salt and pepper.
  4. Finely chop the egg whites and add to the salad bowl. Pour the sauce over and using  wooden servers, toss carefully.  Garnish with thinly sliced lemons.

 

 

Lebanese Tabbouleh

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This is made in many different ways. Here I increased the bulghur wheat portion to make it meatier by following the cooking instructions on the box.   Below I will give you the recipe that technically is the original recipe for tabbouleh.  It is courtesy  of Culina Mundi by Chef Hussein Fakih.

Lebanese Tabbouleh

  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

4 bunches of flat- leaf parsely

2 to 3 sprigs of fresh mint

1 medium onion

2 1/4 pound of tomatoes

7 tablespoons of bulghur wheat

1 tsp of salt

1 tsp of pepper

3 lemons

1/3 cup of olive oil

for the garnish:

lemon slices

quartered tomatoes

Directions

Chop the parsley and mint leaves finely. Chop the onion and tomatoes. Mix together in a salad bowl. Sprinkle with the bulghur, salt and pepper. Add the lemon juice and olive oil. Mix all the ingredients together and serve in a deep serving dish. Garnish with the lemons and tomatoes. 

Lentil Salad with Walnut Oil

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This salad can be a meal by itself since it has ham and bacon. Great for a summer lunch! this is courtesy  of Patricia Wells, The Paris Cookbook.

Lentil Salad with Walnut Oil

Ingredients

The Lentils

2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, minced

2 ounces of ham cut into cubes, about 1/2 cup

3 cups or 1 pond of french lentils, such as lentilles du Puy

1 quart if chicken stock

The Vinaigrette

1 tablespoon of French Dijon mustard

2 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar

2/3 cup of walnut oil

1 shallot minced

sea salt and pepper to taste

4 ounces of bacon, cubed

3 tablespoon of chives, minced 

Directions

Add the olive oil to the pan over medium high heat, lower the heat add the onions and ham. Cook for about 5 minutes, till translucent. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Place the lentils in a fine-mesh sieve and rinse under cold water. Transfer them to a saucepan and cover with cold water. And bring to a boil. Then remove the pan from the heat and transfer the lentils back to the sieve and rinse again with cold water. Return the lentils to the pan and add the chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer, and with a slotted spoon skim off the impurities off the top. Let it simmer gently for about 30 minutes . They lentils should be firm in the center.

Meanwhile prepare the vinaigrette. In a large salad bowl add the mustard and vinegar and whisk to blend. Add the shallots and oil and whisk again. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a non stick pan fry the bacon till crisp. Drain over paper towels and set aside.

Drain the lentils in a sieve, discarding any liquid. place in the salad and toss in the vinaigrette. Let it it for about 10 minutes to absorb the dressing. Add the onion and ham.

Sprinkle with the chives and bacon and taste for seasoning. Serve warm.

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Chickpea Salad with Sweet Peppers and Herbs

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Here’s another great salad for those barbecues!

the fashionista cook

This is another great salad that can be made a day ahead. I got the recipe from Elizabeth Bard’s Picnic in Provence. This is her second book on her life in France, while sharing recipes.

1 red pepper and 1 yellow pepper thinly sliced

1 yellow and 1 red onion thinly sliced

pinch of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of ground Spanish nora peppers or good quality smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds

1/2 teaspoon harissa ( North African hot pepper paste) or a pinch or two of hot pepper flakes

1/2 cup of olive oil

3 cups of canned chickpeas ( 2 14 ounce cans) drained

black pepper

a good pinch of coarse sea salt

1 cup packed flat leafed parsley, with stems finely chopped

1 tablespoon packed fresh mint finely chopped

lemon slices for garnish

Preheat oven 350F

In a large casserole dish combine the peppers, onions, and dry…

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Potato and Green Bean Salad with Pastis Vinaigrette

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This week I will reblog salads I made for our cookout over the Fourth of July last year.

the fashionista cook

This is one of the salads I made for our cookout over this holiday weekend. I will post the others later. I made it the night before and added the dressing a couple of hours before serving and let it get to room temperature. The recipe is in Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard. Which a great read by the way. It serves 4-6, but it can easily be doubled.

2 teaspoons of white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon pastis (an apertif, liquorice test) or anisette

1/4 teaspoon of coarse sea salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil or more up to 1/2 cup to taste

1 1/2 pounds of small red potatoes, halved or quartered

3/4 pounds of haricots verts, extra thin green beans, blanched (I don’t blanch them as I do like them…

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