Salad Days

As summer sets in and the kitchen needs to lighten up--or as some would say "get enlightened", salads take over. And usually your local farmers' market has all the ingredients you need.  So eat fresh, feel fresh as all that summer sunshine slides into your stomach to brighten your way.  Here's the second batch of glamorous full meal salads you can indulge in.

Curried Chicken Salad

not my photo

This is not the stuff of sandwiches but a full plate full meal salad. Chicken salads are among summer's most popular so you can't have too many versions. Serve this with toasted garlic naan and a bowl of cherry tomatoes.
serves 6

2 whole chicken breasts (try for plump ones)
1 c walnuts, halved or coarsely chopped (you can buy "baking pieces"
2/3 lb red seedless grapes or 1 c white raisins, plumped in rose water
4 lg scallions 
1 lg Granny Smith apple, washed and dried
1 tbsp cilantro leaves, chopped
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped

for the dressing
1 lg garlic clove, minced 
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground ginger or 1/2" fresh ginger peeled and grated
pinch of ground cayenne pepper 
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1/4 c plain Greek yogurt (low fat is okay)

(You can do this ahead.) Poach the chicken breasts in a large saucepan or stockpot, covered completely with water. Cover the pot and cook on high heat 15 minutes or until the juice runs clear when they are punctured. Remove from broth and refresh by running cold water over them. Remove skin and bones. Chop the meat into bold chunks.

While chicken poaches, toast the walnuts at 300º 5-8 minutes or until they are slightly golden and crisp. Remove from heat and cool.

In a large serving bowl, combine chopped chicken, toasted walnuts, cilantro leaves, chives and grapes or drained plumped raisins. Cut the scallions into 1/2" long pieces up to 2" of the top of the green. Blend into the salad. Core the apple and half it. Half each half lengthwise. Cut these quarters into big bite sized pieces. There is no one right way to do this. Blend into the salad. Toss the salad.

Make the dressing: put all ingredients into a medium bowl and whisk to blend thoroughly.  You should have a gold flecked mustard color mixture.  Spoon over the salad as much as you want and serve on a bed of baby spinach leaves.  

Chinese Bean Sprout Salad

This is vegan delight if you omit the eggs. It's also very light so you can enjoy rich ice cream afterward. If it's too light, you can plate it with a serving of Chinese peanut butter noodles. 
 serves 6

14-16 oz crisp fresh bean sprouts
2 celery stalks, cut in thin strips
1/3 c dry roasted peanuts or soy nuts
6 scallions, halved lengthwise, then halved horizontally
1/2 lb broccoli florets, blanched
1/2 lb water chestnuts, sliced into thin disks
1/4 lb snow peas, cleaned and dry
1 sm red bell pepper, seeded and cut into thin long strips
3 hard boiled eggs, peeled and quartered 
1/4 lb bamboo shoots
6 button mushrooms, rinsed, dried, sliced thin lengthwise and sauteed 2 minutes in 2 tsp sesame oil
2/3 c Chinese cabbage (aka Napa cabbage) shredded
1/4 lb firm tofu, cut in thin strips
2 tsp sesame seeds, lightly toasted
1 1/2 oz chow mein noodles (they come in a can)
2 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

for the dressing
1 lg garlic clove, minced
1" fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 tbsp soy or tamari sauce
3 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 c corn, soy or safflower oil
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

In a large bowl, combine all the salad ingredients except sesame seeds, chow mein noodles and cilantro. Toss to blend everything.

In a small bowl whisk together all the dressing ingredients.  Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to blend. Then distribute the crunchy chow mein noodles evenly around. Sprinkle the sesame seeds and chopped cilantro on top and serve. 

Panzanella

In Italian, this literally means bread salad and it's a glorious way to get rid of yesterday's fresh bread, sending it off encased in the famous flavors of la dolce vita. It's colorful, nutritious, thrifty, and tasty. Plus it has crucial body needs in summer: salt and oil. Perfect for vegetarians.

Serves 6

6 thick slices Tuscan, French or Levain bread (any very crusty, dense bread)

2 sm red onions, sliced into thin rings

1 lg green bell pepper, diced into bite-sized pieces (about 1” sq)

4 med/lg freshly ripe tomatoes (these are the star of this show), chunked

½ cup shredded Parmesan, Romano or Asiago cheese

12 black olives, pitted

1 tbsp capers

½ cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

¼ cup fresh flat leaf parsley, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

½ cup best quality olive oil + 3 tbsp more

Freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

Put 3 tbsp olive oil in a shallow bowl. Cut bread into bite sized chunks and soak in the oil. Toast the bread at 400º for 5 minutes or until crunchy and browned.

In a small bowl, whisk together garlic, salt, vinegar and olive oil to make a dressing.

Put toasted bread into the bottom of a large serving bowl. Add the onion rings, chunked tomatoes and diced pepper. Add olives, cheese and herbs. Pour on the dressing and blend everything. Season liberally with black pepper freshly ground and serve. (You might not want salt because of the olives, capers and cheese but taste test and add if you like.)

Mexican Corn and Avocado Salad

I created this not only to use all the gorgeous corn on the cob coming from our farms in August but also the wonderful Mexican ingredients in my kitchen including spectacularly nutritious toasted pumpkin seeds. The original was vegetarian but you can "beef" it up by adding chunks of pepperoni or chorizo, chicken or pulled pork. Serve this with a big bowl of tortilla chips.

Serves 6-8

1 lb cooked corn kernels (6-8 fresh ears or one bag of frozen)

1 15oz can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

½ cup green Spanish olives stuffed with pimento

18-20 cherry tomatoes, cleaned

1 lg avocado, peeled and diced

¼ cup roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

½ green bell pepper, seeded and diced

8 baby potatoes, roasted and halved

2 oz queso fresco (farmer's cheese or crumbled feta)
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Optional: ¼ tsp red pepper flakes

for the dressing

3 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tbsp olive oil

dash of Jerez or balsamic vinegar

¼ tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp freshly ground or cracked black pepper

pinch ground chipotle pepper

pinch salt

In a large serving bowl, combine corn, beans, olives, tomatoes, avocado, pumpkin seeds, bell pepper, potatoes and cheese (queso).

For the dressing, whisk together the lime juice, olive oil and vinegar. Whisk in the oregano, black pepper, chipotle and salt. Pour over corn salad and gently toss. Taste and adjust salt if necessary.

Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves and optional red pepper flakes.

Tuna bean (tonno e fagioli)

I owe an ocean of apologies to the Italians for overly simplifying their glorious summer antipasto: freshly poached tuna with white beans and olive oil. This itself is a beautiful simplification of the Provencal Salade Nicoise: poached tuna with baby potatoes, green beans, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes and black olives. In my catering business we whipped up this ridiculously easy version daily calling it among ourselves in the kitchen "two can salad" which sounded exotically to the people ordering like "toucan salad." There you have it: this is a masterpiece made with two cans so it's a handy recipe to have.  You just have to remember that each of the four main ingredients here is as important as the others, so you can't skimp on the parsley or red onion. They are the taste and color assets. The parsley is also a breath and mouth cleanser after the fishy tuna. 

To make a complete meal, serve this with a focaccia or fougasse and sliced fresh tomatoes with basil, olive oil, sea salt and fresh pepper. You can serve it on a bed of arugula too.
serves 4

2  14 oz cans of cannellini (white kidney) beans drained and rinsed 
   or 3 c. cooked from dry
2  7 oz cans tuna in olive oil (must be in olive oil)
1/2 sm red onion or 4 red scallions, minced
1/2 c fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped fine
1 tbsp capers, drained
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
pinches of salt (those capers are salty)

for the dressing
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 c best quality olive oil 

Put the beans in your serving bowl with a pinch of salt. Add the tuna with its olive oil, onion, parsley, capers and black pepper. Add a pinch of salt and toss to blend everything. Be certain you have as much parsley and onion and beans and tuna. 

In a small bowl whisk together the dressing ingredients and pour over the salad to serve

Club Sandwich Salad

This is another one of my catering and cafe creations: a salad based on the ingredients of a traditional club sandwich including croutons to represent the toast.  It's a cinch to throw together and looks glamorous especially with the creamy garlic dressing that represents mayo on the sandwich.
 serves 6

1 lb white meat turkey breast, cooked and chunked
2 medium ripe tomatoes, cored
1/2 lb bacon, cooked to crisp and drained thoroughly
10 inner leaves of romaine lettuce, washed and dried 
1 sm red onion, peeled and finely diced
1 1/2 c croutons (garlic croutons will add flavor)

for the dressing (making your own mayo*)
1 extra lg egg
1 c corn or olive oil
1/3 c red wine vinegar
1/4 c Dijon mustard 
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
5 garlic cloves, minced
 *alternative below

Slice tomatoes into thin wedges, then cut wedges in half.
Break bacon into large pieces.
Break the lettuce leaves with your hands as though making salad.
Combine all the salad ingredients in a large serving bowl or platter and toss to combine.

Dressing with your own mayo
In the bowl of a food processor or blender, whir the egg until it's very light and fluffy. Don't underdo this because you can't overdo it.)
Still whirring, gradually but constantly add the oil in a steady stream. They two should emulsify quickly and the mixture thicken. Add the remaining ingredients and keep processing until smooth and thick. Chill if not serving immediately on the salad.

Alternative dressing with jar mayo
1/4 c jarred mayo
1/4 c olive oil
2 tbsp Dijon mustard 
5 garlic cloves, minced

Whisk all these ingredients together and pour over the salad.

 Part three coming soon: ham and potato salad, Portuguese salt cod and chickpea salad, Moroccan couscous salad, all cheese salad....