Serves 4 to 6
This refreshing salad is perfect for fall and winter months when lettuce greens are in short supply. Sweet apples, cut into matchsticks, are paired with crispy romaine and vinegar-spiked red onions that combine into a perfect forkful with every bite. Pickling the onions in advance mellows their flavor and keeps them from overpowering the salad. Leaving the apples in long slivers ensures that their flavor will shine through and hold up to the vinegar.
SUGGESTED VARIETIES: Fresh-eating apples are best in salads. Try Cameo, Honeycrisp, or Crimson Delight.
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
½ cup red wine vinegar
1 bunch radishes, cleaned and trimmed
½ head romaine lettuce
1 orange, segmented
1 medium apple, julienned
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1⁄8 teaspoon salt
1⁄8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
Put the onion slices in a small bowl and pour the red wine vinegar over them. Set aside for 15 minutes.
Using the largest side of a box grater, grate the radishes, measuring out 1 cup. Put the grated radishes in a large bowl. Separate the romaine leaves and cut in half along the wide center rib. Then cut the leaves into 2-inch-wide strips. Add the lettuce to the bowl with the radishes. Add the orange segments and apple.
Drain the vinegar from the onion, reserving 2 tablespoons, and add the onion and reserved vinegar to the salad. Add the cumin, salt, pepper, and olive oil and toss well to coat the greens. Serve immediately.