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Saturday is the summer solstice and with a bit of luck, we will see the sun. It is the longest day of the year, but it should not take long for you to toss together an easy lunch, brunch or supper.
Although we enjoy salad during the cold-weather months, my frenzy for greens really kicks into high gear once the warm weather arrives. Sometimes my salads aren’t tossed at all. They are what the French call salade compose. The ingredients for these salads are neatly arranged into compartments on a large platter, or each ingredient is set in its own bowl or plate. Although you can arrange one large platter of "compose," presenting the ingredients buffet-style is a nice change of culinary pace.
America is famous for her chef salad and Cobb salad. The French have given us salade ni�oise, while Israelis toss up a cool chopped salad. The Greek salad you prepare at home will not resemble the dreary ones on offer at some pizza shops. As for the Italians — they know their vegetables. Italian salads are simple and allow the ingredients to speak for themselves.
I have been trying to find the origin of the American chef salad. We know the club sandwich has been around since the 1930s because Wallis Simpson, before she became the Duchess of Windsor, taught the Prince of Wales’ butler how to make them for a midnight snack. These classics were born around the same time.
My husband Edward recently brought home a large head of frisee, a most interesting salad green that will add a tasty contrast in taste and texture to all sorts of salads. It is a member of the chicory family and has a very mild bitter flavor.
Here are recipes for cool summer salads. Throughout the season, I will give you recipes for all sorts of salads that will incorporate rice, grains, fish, poultry and beef.
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Salad Ni�oise, Buffet-Style
Ingredients:
1 large head romaine lettuce, separated into leaves
1 large head Boston lettuce, separated into leaves
4 hard-boiled eggs, each cut in half
1/2 pound haricots verts, blanched for one minute in boiling water
Assortment of best-quality black and green olives
2 (7-ounce) cans tuna, in oil, imported from Italy
1 jar imported white anchovies
2 ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 (15-ounce) jar beets, cut into strips
Directions:
Place each ingredient in a separate bowl or plate. Guests build their own salade ni�oise, selecting ingredients from the buffet. The buffet should also include a cruet of extra-virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, several lemons cut into quarters, kosher salt and a pepper mill.
Serves four.
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Israeli Salad
Ingredients:
4 ripe tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 English cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 sweet onion, such as Vidalia or red, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place all ingredients in a large bowl and toss well. Chill before serving.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: Some recipes call for a small heart of romaine lettuce, cut into thin strips; a few radishes, cut into small dice; and some snipped fresh Italian parsley leaves. Feel free to add these ingredients if you wish.
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Greek Salad
Ingredients:
4 ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 English cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
1 sweet onion, such as Vidalia or red, sliced
Handful of imported olives, such as ni�oise, kalamata, Gaeta or picholine
12 ounces imported feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Sprinkling of oregano
Directions:
Place the tomatoes, cucumber and onion in a large bowl. Scatter on the olives and feta cheese. Whisk together the olive oil and lemon juice and pour over the salad. Add salt, pepper and oregano.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: Please use imported feta from Greece, Israel, Bulgaria or France when making this salad. Domestic feta lacks flavor.
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Frisee Salad
Ingredients:
1/2 head frisee
4 ounces baby spinach leaves (about 1/2 of an 8-ounce bag)
4 large radicchio leaves, thinly sliced
1 Belgian endive, thinly sliced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Add the dressing, kosher salt and pepper. Toss well.
Serves four.
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Dandelion Salad
Ingredients:
1 large bunch dandelion greens, tough stems removed
1 small bunch Italian parsley, leaves only
1 small bunch watercress, leaves only
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 pound ricotta salata, sliced with a vegetable peeler
Directions:
Place the salad greens in a bowl and toss well. Add the olive oil and lemon juice. Sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss again. Place the salad on each of four to six chilled salad plates. Top each salad with slices of ricotta salata.
Serves four to six.
Note from Phyllis: Local dandelion greens come into full season in the summertime. Vineland, N.J., is the dandelion capital in our neck of the woods. Each year the city holds a weekend festival that also includes locally made dandelion wine. This salad is pure Italian.
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Moroccan Carrot Salad
Ingredients:
1 pound carrots, peeled and grated
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
A few sprigs Italian parsley, leaves only, snipped with scissors
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss well.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: Sometimes this salad is prepared with raisins. It is interesting to note that American carrot salad, the kind you buy in the prepared section in supermarkets, also contains raisins, but lacks the marvelous Middle Eastern flavors of ginger, cinnamon and cumin.
