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Fresh and fast: The art of salad making
(Los Angeles Times Syndicate) -- There is a lot more to a salad than a tangle of torn greens, shreds of carrot and a wedge of tomato. As a lover of the concept of salad as a main dish, I have spent considerable time and thought on the art of salad making, especially a salad satisfying enough to be called dinner. I begin my salads on a large dinner plate or serving platter and start with a sturdy foundation of two cups of loosely packed salad greens per serving. I use a mixture of torn leaves or part romaine (it adds crunch and sweetness), radicchio (it adds color and a bitter edge), watercress (it adds a peppery bite and a new shape), curly-leaf lettuce (the wavy leaves add a pleasant grainy texture) and arugula (optional if you have used watercress, but a delicious addition). Supermarkets now offer many of these greens, either loose or packed, in see-through bags. Although at first glance they may seem expensive, they more than make up for their cost in convenience and lack of waste. I always rinse these packaged greens in cold water to re-hydrate them, drain and then spin them in my salad spinner. This kind of treatment usually perks them up just enough to make a difference in taste and texture. I like to coat the greens with a light dressing of an acid (lemon, lime or vinegar) tossed with a little extra-virgin olive oil and perhaps some garlic, mustard or fresh herbs. Remember to go very light on the dressing for the delicate greens can be easily drowned. Then comes the good stuff. It could be seasonally fresh figs or ripe luscious tomatoes. Wedges of warm hard-cooked eggs. Spoonfuls of side-dish salads such as green beans with basil and red onion and a red pepper slaw featured below. Shredded chicken, bits of cooked salmon or shrimp or some cooked rice, all moistened with a few tablespoons of the same dressing used to coat the greens, are another option. Add a generous portion of crumbled blue cheese, feta or goat cheese, or curls of Parmesan, Parrano (a recent addition to the cheese case from the Netherlands) or cheddar. The idea is to balance the salad as you would balance a menu of hot cooked foods -- protein and carbohydrates in the form of beans, grains, seafood, meat, dairy and fresh vegetables or fruit. Don't forget additions like nuts (toasted in the skillet to bring out flavor) or sprigs of fresh herbs (parsley, dill, basil and cilantro), olives, capers or dried tomatoes. For dessert, make a fresh blueberry tart if you have the time. The recipe is simpler than you might think as the crust is made in the food processor and then the crumbly pastry is quickly pressed into the pan. No messy, time-consuming rolling out of dough is required. Plus the crust can be made ahead of time, then filled and baked the same day as served. But, as an alternate to baking, there is also a recipe for figs bathed in warm honey and spooned over vanilla ice cream. Either dessert is perfect before fresh blueberries or figs are gone from the marketplace for another year. Menu
Preparation Shopping Optional for blueberry tart: Salad plate of Mixed Greens with Lemon VinaigrettePreparation time: 10 minutes
Preparation For dressing whisk olive oil, lemon juice, salt, garlic and black pepper to taste until blended. Set aside until ready to use. Just before serving, toss greens with dressing. Distribute greens among 4 dinner plates. Then add other salads below. Sprinkle with crumbled cheese. Makes 4 servings. Green Beans with Basil and Red OnionPreparation time: 10 minutes Preparation Bring large pan of water to boil. Add 2 teaspoons salt. Stir in green beans and cook until crisp-tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain. Combine in large bowl while still hot with onion, basil and olive oil. Add more salt to taste. Toss and set aside until ready to serve. Serve at room temperature. Makes 4 servings. Red Bell Pepper SlawPreparation time: 15 minutes Preparation Combine peppers, celery, parsley, olives, olive oil, vinegar and grinding of black pepper. Add salt to taste. Top salad greens (recipe above) with spoonful of slaw, dividing evenly. Makes 4 servings. Blueberry TartPreparation time: 15 minutes Don't be intimidated by the word 'tart.' The crust for this tart is made quickly in a food processor and pressed into the pan with fingertips. No messy or time-consuming crust to roll out as when making a pie. Crust: Filling: Preparation To prepare Crust, process flour, granulated sugar and salt in food processor until blended. With motor running, add butter, few pieces at time, until crumbly. Stir egg yolk and vanilla together until blended. With motor running slowly, add egg mixture and process just until dough forms into large sticky lumps. Turn out onto lightly floured work surface. With floured hands flatten dough into disk shape. Using floured fingers, press dough evenly along bottom and up sides of loose-bottomed 9- or 10-inch tart pan. Refrigerate. (Crust can be made ahead, wrapped and refrigerated or frozen for several days.) To prepare Filling, set aside 1 1/2 cups berries. In large bowl, stir granulated sugar, flour and cinnamon until blended. Add remaining berries and toss to coat. Pour berries and any loose sugar mixture into prepared tart shell and spread evenly. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce oven to 350 degrees and bake until crust is golden and berries are soft and beginning to bubble, 35 to 45 minutes longer. Remove from oven. While tart is warm, spread reserved berries in single layer on top of cooked berries. Cool thoroughly before removing outer rim of tart pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar to taste before serving. Makes 6 to 8 servings. Warm Fig and Honey Sauce on Ice CreamPreparation time: 5 minutes Preparation Makes 4 servings. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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