The Verdict is In: A Watermelon without pips (seeds) is not a real Watermelon.
Whoever invented watermelons without seeds did a grave injustice to summertime. Is there anyone among us whose childhood didn’t include a seed-spitting competition?
This is what came to mind as I prepared this week’s summer salad choice, Watermelon, Feta and Black Olive Salad. I first spotted this recipe in Nigella Lawson’s ForeverSummer cookbook published in 2003. Oprah adapted it for her August 2006 issue and Martha highlighted it in an July-August 2007 issue. When a food blogging colleague recently reminded me of this tasty Greek combo, I pulled out my cookbook.
This salad stands out in any crowd.
Since I’m back in Colorado where summer is synonymous with potlucks, I see this as a perfect contribution to a food table. This Mediterranean salad is splashy, stealing center stage from the traditional potato salad and coleslaw. It’s tasty, with no hidden players. Everything – melon, olives, feta and red onions – are independent but swing well with each other. This salad likes to travel and will hold up just fine, if need be. A big crowd? It doubles or triples easily.
The lime juice enables the red onion slices to blush.
Maybe the Greeks can’t balance their budget but they sure can create a razzle-dazzle salad.
Nigella Lawson’s Watermelon, Feta and Black Olive Salad
Forever Summer (2003)
Serves: 8
INGREDIENTS
(the only adaption I made was exchanging walnut oil for olive oil and adding toasted chopped walnuts)
1 small red onion
2-4 limes, depending on juiciness (the more, the better, I think)
1.5 kg (3.3 lbs ) sweet, ripe watermelon
250g (1 cup) feta cheese
Bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley
Bunch fresh mint, chopped
3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil ( I used walnut oil)
100g ( 1/3 to 1/2 cup) pitted black olives
1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts (my addition)
Black pepper
METHOD
Serves: 8
1.Peel and halve the red onion and cut into very fine half-moons. Put in a small bowl to steep with the lime juice and bring out the transparent pinkness in the onions and diminish their rasp.
2. Remove the rind and pips (seeds) from the watermelon, and cut into triangular chunks (see picture). Cut the feta into similar sized pieces and put them both into a large, wide shallow bowl. Tear off sprigs of parsley so that it is used like a salad leaf, rather than a garnish, and add to the bowl along with the chopped mint.
3. Pour the onions, along with their pink juices, over the salad already in the bowl. Add the oil, olives and nuts. Using your hands, toss the salad very gently so that the feta and melon don’t lose their shape. Grind black pepper to taste and add more lime juice, if needed.
Note: I bought a seedless (without pips) watermelon for this salad. I didn’t think it had the flavor of the regular watermelons I usually purchase. Not a scientific study, however.
An early supper, prior to showtime, roasted chicken, céleri rémoulade and a baguette.
Since a trip to France is in my near future, it’s time to dust off the grammar books, pull out the flashcards and begin listening to Michael Thomas’ “Speak French” CD’s. He may be touted as “the language teacher to the world” but, truthfully, I find him very irritating. Still, I listen and repeat, over and over again.
The highlight of my summer schedule, to reward myself for daily disciplined study, is French film night. Once a week I order a film and settle in.
L’Affaire Farewell, a spy thriller based on a true Russian espionage event which occurred during the Cold War era in the Eighties.
Although I always block the English subtitles, after twenty minutes I usually fold and turn “English” on (but try not to peek). Tonight I’m watching “L’Affaire Farewell”, an espionage thriller set at the height of the cold war (1981). It’s based on a true story involving a KGB official and a French engineer. Sounds good, don’t you think?
To set the mood, I picked up a roasted chicken from my butcher, bought a baguette and prepared Céleri Rémoulade, a classic French starter/salad and #3 of my summer salad recipes. Americans sometimes compare this dish to coleslaw. Although celery root is considered a winter vegetable, I found these handsome devils at my local farmers market last week-end.
These little balls of bumps are happy being called céleri or celeriac or celery root. Your choice.
This was quite simple to put together, was a perfect compliment to the chicken, and would be just as delicious with a steak or the like. I’ve tasted Céleri Rémoulade so many times when in France and am happy to now know how to make it myself.
The celeri, after being grated in the food processor. It’s time to mix in salt and lemon juice.
The mustard, mayonnaise dressing.
CÉLERI RÉMOULADE
Adapted from Ida Garten’s Barefoot in Paris cookbook, Celery Root Rémoulade, p. 94.
Céleri Rémoulade
Serves Six
Ingredients
2 pounds celery root
3 teaspoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
2 teaspoons Champagne vinegar (or, white wine vinegar)
2 tablespoons capers
5 cornichons, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Wash the celeriac (also called celery root) well. Using a sharp knife, peel off all the celeriac’s brown outer portions. Cut the celery root into thin matchsticks with a mandoline, or grate them in a food processor fitted with the coarsest grating blade. I applied pressure to the pieces as I fed the chunks through the feeder. Place the celery root in a large bowl, sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of the salt, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and mix gently. Allow to stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together the mayonnaise, the 2 mustards, the remaining tablespoon of lemon juice, the vinegar, the remaining teaspoon of salt and the pepper.
Add enough dressing to lightly moisten the salad and to your taste. Stir in the capers and cornichons. Save the extra sauce to add, if needed, just before serving when you also add the chopped parsley. Serve cold or at room temperature.
Isn’t it delightful, at times, to experience a civilized moment?
Living in the moment is good. If it’s civilized? So much the better.
Thanks to a love affair with trout, yesterday I was “ a lady who lunches” meets Walden Pond. Like that old rascal, Thoreau, I savored the solitude and silence of my own backyard. Admittedly, mine is man-made. But that was then, 1854, and this is now, 2012.
When I closed my eyes this was Walden Pond. Eyes opened? My own backyard.
For lunch, in my continuing effort to expand my salad repertoire, I made Smoked Trout & Potato Salad with Buttermilk Vinaigrette, included a baguette from local BonjourBakery and washed it down with a Strawberry Rosé Spritzer. Okay, two spritzers. After all, I was really into being civilized.
Smoked Trout & Potato Salad with Buttermilk Vinaigrette, a satisfyingly delicious lunch or light dinner.
Smoked Trout & Potato Salad with Buttermilk Vinaigrette
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons Olea Farm Lemon Blush Olive Oil
1 tablespoon freshly chopped dill
Diamond Crystal Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
The salad:
1 tablespoon Olea Farm Olive Oil
6 baby red potatoes, sliced into thin coins
1 cup chicken stock (enough to cover)
6 ounces smoked trout, skin removed Diamond Crystal Kosher salt
Directions:
For the dressing, mix together the buttermilk, vinegar, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Slowly whisk in the olive oil (or drip, drip, drip in the food processor) before adding the chopped dill. Season liberally with salt. Pepper, to taste.
For the salad, heat olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the potatoes and another generous pinch of salt. Sauté for a minute or two before adding chicken stock. Bring to a gentle boil. Cook the potatoes until tender, not mushy, about 6-8 minutes. Drain and pour into a glass bowl.
After removing the skin, flake the trout into small pieces over the potatoes. Pour about half the dressing over the trout/potato mixture and kindly fold until combined. Add additional dressing to taste. Garnish the salad with dill sprigs and serve at room temperature.
Note: Let the trout be the star of the show. This nutritious and tasty plate asks for only two primary ingredients. Two is the magic number here. While I believe this salad is best served at room temperature, I also enjoyed a “refrigerated version” for breakfast this morning. Yes, for breakfast. Still yummy.
In The Spirit of Full Discloser: Realizing that Thumper, Peter and other pesky wabbits had enjoyed my dill, I substituted dried dill for fresh in the dressing and found the last sprig standing for the salad. Long Live Elmer Fudd.
3-4 tablespoons sugar, according to the sweetness of berries
Stir together the strawberries and sugar in a bowl. After an hour or two, they will be sugar-soaked. Put 1/2 of the berries in a plastic bag and throw in the freezer to make ice cubes. Puree the remaining berries in a blender, and then pass the puree through a fine mesh sieve. Set aside.
Spritzer:
3 tablespoons strained strawberry puree
3 ounces Rosé (choose your favorite)
Soda Water
Directions:
For One drink, throw 3 or 4 frozen strawberries, depending on their size, into a red wine glass. Add the strawberry puree and rosé and stir together. Top off the pour with soda water. Stir once, gently. Delicious.
Note: Most of the time I total and this summertime drink lends itself well to teetotalers like me. To make the non-alcoholic version, just increase the puree and add soda water or ginger ale. It’s good and lets you feel like “one of the crowd.”
