CHERRY TOMATO, MELON, AND MINT SALAD
GREEN BEAN, BASIL, AND RADISH SALAD
DILLED CELERY, ASIAN PEAR, AND HAZELNUT SALAD
WINTER GREENS WITH SAGE-POACHED CHERRIES
SQUID AND PIQUILLO PEPPER SALAD WITH OREGANO
MELONS AND TOMATOES ARE TECHNICALLY BOTH FRUITS, so combining them in a salad isn’t such a stretch. Like many things from the garden that enjoy the same growing conditions and ripen together, they make ideal partners. Of course, the riper and sweeter the fruit, the better this simple salad will be.
4 cups melon balls, scooped from ripe melon, such as cantaloupe, honeydew, or galia, at room temperature
2 cups ripe cherry tomato halves, at room temperature
4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped spearmint
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
Gently toss all of the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. That’s it. This salad is best served within an hour of assembling it.
FILLET BEANS, THE SLENDER GREEN BEANS that are sometimes called haricots verts or “French beans,” are perfect for this salad, but you can use other types of fresh beans, like Romano beans or runner beans, if you angle-cut them into bite-sized pieces. Just be sure they’re snappy, tender, and sweet.
¼ cup finely chopped shallots
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 pound fresh fillet green beans
1 bunch radishes, cut into wedges (about 2 cups)
½ cup coarsely chopped basil
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup thin shavings Parmigiano-Reggiano
Stir the shallots and vinegar together in a large mixing bowl and let them sit to mellow the raw bite of the shallots.
Boil the beans in a large pot of heavily salted water until just tender but still have some crunch. Drain the beans and then plunge them into a large bowl of ice water. Drain again and dry on paper towels.
Add the beans to the bowl with the shallots. Toss in the radishes, basil, olive oil, salt, and a few grindings of black pepper. Turn out onto a serving platter and top with the shaved cheese.
herbal improvisations In place of the basil, add 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped tarragon and top the salad with crumbled goat cheese instead of Parmesan. Or add ¼ cup coarsely chopped dill and top with crumbled feta.
THIS SPARKLING SUMMER SALAD goes with anything from the grill or picnic basket. Be sure to tear the basil in large pieces so you get big bursts of its flavor. Ordinary sweet basil is very good in this recipe, but lemon basil, if you grow it, will really find its groove in this dish.
½ medium red onion, finely diced
¼ cup white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons kosher salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ears sweet corn, shucked
8 ounces orzo pasta
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced into ¼-inch pieces
1 ½ cups torn leaves of sweet basil or lemon basil
Stir the red onion, vinegar, lime juice, salt, and pepper together in a large mixing bowl. Let it sit while you continue with the recipe, allowing the acidic ingredients to mellow the raw bite of the onion.
Hold the ears of corn upright on a large cutting board and cut off the kernels, being careful not to cut so deep you shave the cob. They should give you about 5 cups of kernels.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the orzo and when it is just tender, after about 8 minutes, add the corn kernels to the pot. Cook until the water boils again, then drain in a colander, and rinse with cold water.
Stir the olive oil into the bowl with the dressed onion. Toss in the pasta and corn, red bell pepper, and basil until evenly combined. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.
THIS VIBRANT-TASTING SLAW gets its heat from Sriracha sauce, a Thai hot pepper sauce that’s in so many American refrigerators it’s practically the ketchup of the ‘00s. It’s sold in plastic squeeze bottles in Asian grocery stores and many supermarkets.
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon sugar
¼ cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (Thai hot pepper sauce)
1 pound green cabbage, very finely sliced
1 large carrot, grated
1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely sliced
1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
Whisk together the mayonnaise, vinegar, lime juice, sugar, soy sauce, and Sriracha sauce in a large bowl. Toss in the remaining ingredients. Refrigerate at least an hour to wilt the cabbage and blend the flavors.
A VINAIGRETTE IS OFTEN THE BEST CHOICE for dressing a salad, but sometimes only a good-old creamy dressing will hit the spot, especially when the salad is the meal or you’re dunking vegetables as a snack. Here’s where I admit to one of my guilty pleasures: I adore ranch dressing. This is a homemade take on it, full of bright green herbs and zesty flavor. It calls for powdered buttermilk, which I’d doubt is in your cupboard at the moment, but it is more widely available than you might think; you can find it in many supermarkets and natural foods markets. It gives the dressing a thick and creamy consistency without adding heaps of mayonnaise. I like to drizzle it on a crisp wedge of organically grown iceberg alongside a hard-boiled egg and ripe tomato wedges.
¼ cup dill sprigs
¼ cup parsley sprigs
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
¼ medium shallot
½ clove garlic
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Splash of Tabasco or other hot sauce
1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
½ cup canola oil
¾ cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons powdered buttermilk
Puree all of the ingredients in a blender until very smooth. Refrigerate the dressing for at least an hour to allow it to thicken.
herbal improvisations In place of the dill and thyme, add one of the following: ¼ cup basil leaves and 1 tablespoon marjoram leaves, 2 tablespoons tarragon leaves, or 2 tablespoons dill and 1 tablespoon lovage leaves.
There are two kinds of culinary bay leaves: bay laurel and California bay. Now that fresh bay leaves are showing up in stores, it’s important for cooks to know the difference between them. Bay laurel leaves come from the tree Laurus nobilis, known as Turkish bay or sweet bay. California bay leaves also come from a large tree, the totally unrelated Umbellularia californica. There is some similarity in the scent, but California bay is ten times stronger than bay laurel, and if you substitute it in a recipe calling for bay laurel you will ruin the dish with its overpowering flavor. The shocking thing is that when you buy fresh bay leaves in the supermarket, nine times out of ten they are California bay, even though they don’t say that on the label.
Here’s how to tell the difference: Bay laurel leaves are a glossy deep green and shaped in an oval that’s evenly tapered and pointed at the top and bottom ends. They often have wavy edges. California bay leaves have a narrow oval shape, but more like the silhouette of a slender flame, with the widest part of the leaf near the bottom, then gradually tapering to a point at the top. They are grayer, especially on the underside, have smooth straight edges, and are usually thinner and more pliable than bay laurel. When you tear or crush a bay laurel leaf you will smell a mild, sweet, nutmeglike scent, whereas a California bay leaf will smell powerfully of menthol and petroleum overtones.
I RECOMMEND AVOIDING CALIFORNIA BAY ALTOGETHER. In most cases it’s better to cook with dried bay laurel leaves if fresh are not available.
FRESH BAY LAUREL LEAVES GIVE A SUBTLE SWEET SPICE FLAVOR to desserts, almost like nutmeg, vanilla, and butterscotch. Steep them in hot milk or cream used for custards and strain them out, or cook them with winter fruits, then pull them out before serving.
YOU CAN GROW BAY LAUREL OUTDOORS IN ZONE 8 OR WARMER. In climates with colder winters, it must be grown in a large pot and taken indoors when the weather cools. When inside, put it in a cool spot with plenty of light and keep it on the dry side.
IF YOU ARE AT THE COLDER RANGE OF BAY’S HARDINESS ZONE, plant it in a sheltered spot that receives plenty of winter sun. It will grow slowly at first, but once it gets established it will double in size each year, and in a number of years you’ll have a huge shrub.
WHEN YOU HARVEST, TUG THE BAY LEAF DOWNWARD until it snaps off. Mature leathery leaves have more flavor than soft new ones. Fresh bay leaves will keep for more than a month in a small freezer bag in the refrigerator.
MORE OF A SALAD THAN A PICKLE, these snappy colorful vegetables are just the thing to have on hand as a refreshing accompaniment to grilled meats and spicy foods, and will keep for a week in the refrigerator. Have fun experimenting with different herb combinations—just about anything works.
½ cup kosher salt
2 quarts cool water
2 quarts prepared vegetables, such as strips of bell pepper, fennel bulb or cabbage, carrot sticks, seeded cucumber half-moons, or cauliflower florets
2 cups white wine vinegar
¾ cup sugar
2 cups water
4 dried Szechwan or Thai bird chiles or ¼ teaspoon hot pepper flakes
3 bay laurel leaves, fresh or dry
One 1-ounce bunch of herb sprigs; try one of these combinations:
Thyme and lovage
Lemon verbena and mint
Tarragon and fennel seed
Sage and lemon thyme
Stir the salt and 2 quarts water together in a large plastic container or glass bowl until the salt dissolves. Add the vegetables and let them sit in this brine at room temperature for 4 to 6 hours.
Bring the vinegar, sugar, 2 cups water, chiles, and bay leaves to a boil in a saucepan. Drop in the herb bunch, turn off the heat, and let the liquid cool to room temperature.
Drain the vegetables, put them back in the container, and pour the pickling liquid with the herbs over the top. Press the vegetables down under the liquid if they are exposed. Cover and refrigerate. The pickles will be ready to eat the next day.
THIS WINTER SALAD, pairing the juicy snap of Asian pear and celery, then studded with hazelnuts and laced with dill, gets its inspiration from the classic Waldorf salad. It’s especially nice served alongside a wedge of blue-veined cheese, such as Point Reyes Blue, Maytag Blue, or Bleu d’Auvergne.
1½ tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup hazelnut oil or extra virgin olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced celery
¼ cup coarsely chopped dill weed
1 medium unpeeled Asian pear or Bosc pear, cored and cut into thick matchsticks
½ cup coarsely chopped toasted hazelnuts
Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Whisk rapidly as you pour in the oil in a slow stream. Just before you serve, toss the celery and dill with the dressing in a large mixing bowl, and then gently toss in the Asian pear and hazelnuts. Mound the salad on individual plates and serve.
DRIED TART CHERRIES ARE RELATIVELY NEW to grocery shelves. I couldn’t do without them in the winter. I add them to sauces for pork or game birds, to desserts, and to salads, where their sweet-tart flavor is just the right counterpoint to slightly bitter winter greens. They’re so good steeped with red wine and fresh sage you might devour them without the salad. Serve this salad as a first course; for a light supper, add a warmed goat cheese crottin and toasted bread.
1 cup full-bodied red wine
Four 3-inch sprigs sage
¾ cup dried tart cherries (sweetened), about 4 ounces
3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 quarts mixed winter greens, such as frisée, endive,
radicchio, arugula, mâche, baby spinach, or Belgian endive,
washed, dried, and in bite-sized pieces
¾ cup toasted, coarsely chopped walnuts
Bring the wine to a simmer in your smallest saucepan. Stir in the sage sprigs and cherries. Cook until the wine begins to simmer again, and then take the pan off the heat. If the cherries are not submerged, tilt the pan at a 45-degree angle and prop it in that position. Let the cherries steep in the wine for at least half an hour.
Whisk together the vinegar and mustard in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Drain the cherries and discard the sage sprigs.
Put the greens in a large mixing bowl and pour the dressing over them. Sprinkle with a large pinch of salt and a few grindings of black pepper, and toss with tongs until the greens are evenly dressed. Arrange the salad on a large platter or on individual serving plates. Sprinkle with the walnuts and cherries. Serve right away.
I’LL ADMIT NOT EVERYONE FALLS IN LOVE with the flavor of shiso at first taste, but it doesn’t take long to be charmed by its knack for enhancing certain foods. Traditionally, shiso is added to some types of sushi and used to flavor rice or pickled vegetables. Over the many years that I’ve cooked with it I’ve discovered it’s the perfect counterpoint to fresh crabmeat.
If you don’t grow shiso in your own garden you can find the fresh leaves in Asian grocery stores. There are both green and deep purple varieties. Choose either for this elegant crab cocktail.
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
¼ cup seasoned rice wine vinegar (sushi vinegar)
1½ tablespoons finely chopped shiso (perilla)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 ounces best-quality fresh crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
Pulp from 2 ripe avocados, cut into ½-inch dice
Freshly ground black pepper
Coarse sea salt or kosher salt if needed
Stir the onion, vinegar, and shiso together in a medium mixing bowl and let it sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to mellow the onion flavor.
Stir in the olive oil and then gently toss in the crab and avocado. Season the salad with a few grindings of black pepper and taste it; add salt if you think it needs it. Some crabmeat is already quite salty so the salad might not need additional salt. Spoon the salad into stemmed glasses and serve cold.
Shiso is the Japanese name for a type of perilla, an annual in the mint family that grows with abandon and has a distinct spicy scent reminiscent of cinnamon and cumin. This herb is poised to be discovered by more and more cooks in the coming years because its unique flavor flatters many types of foods and it grows easily in most areas.
Here’s something to watch for: After growing and cooking with shiso for many years, I’ve had a recent frustration. Much of the seed we’ve bought lately produces plants with almost no flavor, and sometimes shiso plants that are sold in nurseries are grown from this inferior seed. If you purchase the plants as starts, rub the leaves and be sure they have the very prominent and distinct scent they should. If you buy seed, I recommend you purchase it from a seed company that specializes in Asian vegetables, but you have no way of telling how it will taste until it grows its first true leaves. There are two commonly grown types of shiso: a green variety with large, slightly ruffled leaves, and a red one with deep mahogany leaves that are very ruffled. Once you grow shiso you are happy with, save its seed to plant next year, although it often self-sows.
Fresh shiso is used in many sushi restaurants and is grown commercially in California. If there is a Japanese grocery in your area, they will probably sell it, often in small bundles of perfectly uniform leaves. Fortunately, all of the commercially grown shiso that I’ve tried is good and flavorful.
SHISO LIKES THE SAME GROWING CONDITIONS AS BASIL. Plant it when the weather warms.
GREEN AND RED SHISO TASTE SIMILAR, but many consider the green’s flavor to be superior.
RED SHISO WILL BLEED A BEAUTIFUL MAGENTA COLOR into clear marinades or vinegars.
SHISO LOSES FLAVOR WITH COOKING; use it raw or add it at the end of the cooking process.
THE FLOWER BUDS OF SHISO HAVE A POTENT FLAVOR and are traditionally used for tempura.
KOREAN PERILLA HAS A DIFFERENT FLAVOR than Japanese shiso and should not be substituted for it.
GREEK OREGANO’S BRASH FLAVOR doesn’t live with everything, but it certainly fits in this salad, where it stands up to the sharpness of the peppers and enlivens the neutral flavor of the squid.
Piquillo peppers are imported from Spain and are mildly spicy, slightly bitter, and thin fleshed. They are wood-roasted and peeled and come in jars or tins, or sometimes you’ll see them sold in well-stocked deli cases.
Squid is now available at many fish counters already cleaned; in fact, it’s sometimes harder to find in its uncleaned state. It saves a lot of time and mess, but be aware that it’s never cleaned thoroughly enough and still requires a once-over in your kitchen.
1 pound cleaned squid (calamari), tubes and tentacles
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ red onion, sliced ¼ inch thick from root to top
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1½ tablespoons chopped Greek oregano
4 ounces piquillo peppers, cut into thin 2-inch-long strips (¾ cup)
½ cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Even if you purchase the squid cleaned, rinse out the tubes and run your finger in the pocket to be sure they are empty. Cut the tentacles right above where they are connected (they often have viscera attached), then check to be sure the hard round beak is removed. Cut the tubes into ¾-inch rings. Pat the rings and tentacles between paper towels to dry.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the red onion and cook over medium heat until it just begins to soften, about 2 minutes. Increase the heat to high and add the squid. Sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and stir it around until the squid firms up and whitens, about 2 more minutes. Scoop the squid and onion into a strainer or colander to drain, then spread them out on a large plate to cool.
When the squid is no longer hot, mix it with the vinegar, the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, the oregano, peppers, parsley, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and refrigerate the salad for at least several hours before serving. It will keep up to 2 days.
