At last, the finale of my Sixty Salads of Summer. It’s been an incredible journey, filled with new ideas, shared recipes, and lots and lots of good food! Thanks to all for your support and for your contributions....what a wonderful adventure!
Last night I threw an end of summer bash as part of my week of “happy birthday to me.” Surrounded by friends and family, we enjoyed delicious food and drink under the stars in my back yard. Guests brought tapas, Spanish “small plates” of appetizers while old friends caught up, and new friends were made. It’s no mistake that many of my closest friends are great cooks. My dear friends Dot and Jeff brought (in Jeff’s own words), ”an ad-hoc creation that arose out of an idea to have slices of fresh mozzarella to layer onto the crostini under the tomatoes. It ended up morphing into a combo of mozzarella, herb-infused olive oil and greek-style diced roasted red peppers that we found at the local farmer's market that morning.” Ridiculously delicious. My BFF, Carol, brought her famous seafood-stuffed portobello mushrooms. Pure heaven. Gloria Russo, daughter of the owners of the best Italian sandwich shop in town, brought homemade pizza rolls to-die-for. And my lovely daughter, Danica, made blue cheese stuffed dates, wrapped in applewood smoked bacon. Man oh man. There were so many other tasty delights, I can’t mention them all.
As if that wasn’t enough, we grilled Paella Mixta over a wood fire in a 30” paella pan. Paella is filled with the delicious flavors of Spain, and this one included the traditional grilled chicken, clams, mussels, scallops and shrimp. It also has some pretty impressive presentation points.
So needless to say, the salad, no matter how fresh and....salad-y, just wasn’t going to take center stage! As is so often salad’s role, it was going to have to complement, not compete, with the other stars of the table.
Grilled zucchini ribbons and baby spinach seemed like a good choice. I used toasted pine nuts and shaved parmesan to add some nuttiness and depth, and topped it off with a lemon honey vinaigrette.
Zucchini is such a great summer vegetable. Anyone who’s ever had a garden knows what it’s like to find enough recipes to use up the profusion of zucchini that can spring from just a few plants. I used 4 medium zucchini and made ribbons with a vegetable peeler. Grip the stem end and peel from end to end until you hit the seeds. (By the way, these make great “pasta” too, tossed with olive oil, garlic and basil, lightly sauteed and sprinkled with fresh parmesan).
I hope you’ve enjoyed this adventure with me, and I hope I’ve inspired you to try new things and eat well! Bon Appetit!
Ingredients
8 oz baby spinach
4 medium zucchini, cut into ribbons and grilled
1/2 cup roasted pine nuts
4 oz shaved parmesan cheese
Lemon Honey Vinaigrette
1/3 cup olive oil
4 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 1/2 lemons, depending on their juiciness)
1 1/2 Tbsp honey
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp each kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
You can either whisk the dressing or blend it. I chose to blend it, which makes a creamier, almost whipped texture. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Taste for seasoning and adjust the honey/lemon as you like. Set aside.
Preheat and lightly oil a cast iron indoor grill, and grill the ribbons. Because they’re so thin, they develop beautiful grill marks that go all the way through, both sides, within a minute or two. Lightly season with salt and pepper, and remove as you rotate all of the ribbons onto and off of the hot grill. Set them aside to cool until you’re ready to make your salad.
I was looking for a little added convenience, so I used already toasted pine nuts and already shaved parmesan. But if you use raw pine nuts, toast them in a heavy, hot skillet. Keep a close eye on them and remove as soon as they start to smell toasty and turn golden. They go from golden to burned in the blink of an eye! Shave fresh parmesan using a vegetable peeler and room temperature parmesan cheese. Hold the cheese firmly and “peel,” to get thin shavings of the cheese.
Combine the baby spinach, parmesan, pine nuts and zucchini ribbons in a large bowl. Reserve a few zucchini ribbons to drape over the dressed salad afterwards. Dress with lemon honey vinaigrette, and serve immediately.
This is a BIG salad for a large crowd (or a smaller group
of salad enthusiasts).
The real stars of the night. Paella Mixta over a wood fire...and the best of friends.
of salad enthusiasts).
The real stars of the night. Paella Mixta over a wood fire...and the best of friends.
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