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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 15 Minutes |
Ready In: 15 Minutes Servings: 6 |
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A while back, my sister gave me a cookbook from the Balthazar restaraunt in New York . This is a salad recipe from the book that I made for a family progressive dinner. It was a real hit. It is a sexy salad that would be a perfect starter for a romantic meal. Read more . It is light, substantial and classy at the same time. Dressing all the ingredients separately is a key.. Hope you enjoy.... Ingredients:
1 cup walnuts |
1/4 cup olive oil |
1/2 lb haricots verts (or very thin green beans) |
4 leeks, thinly sliced (white and pale green parts only) |
1/4 cup sherry wine vinegar |
1 tsp dijon mustard |
3/4 cup grapeseed oil (or canola) |
1/4 cup cold pressed walnut oil |
1/4 tsp salt or to taste |
4 medium beets, roasted and chopped into 1/2 inch dice |
2 heads belgium endive, julienned lengthwise into 1/2 inch strips (or substitute bib lettuce cut the same way) |
1/4 lb blue cheese (roquefort ) cut into 12 pieces |
fresh ground black pepper to taste. |
Directions:
1. ROASTED BEETS (Can be done the night before)
2. Wash beets well and cut off all but about 1/2 inch of the stem. Brush with Olive Oil, season with Salt & Pepper and wrap each Beet separately in a foil pouch inserting a sprig of thyme in each pouch. Bake at 325 – 350 degrees until fork tender. (1 – 1 1/2 hrs.) Cool, remove skin and dice. Place in a bowl, cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 45 mins.
3. TOASTED NUTS
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spread Walnuts on a sheet pan and roast until they are aromatic but don’t allow to brown. (3 – 5 mins). Transfer to a dish, reserve.
5. BEANS & LEEKS
6. In a large bowl, prepare a ice water bath. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the Haricot Verts and cook until crisp tender. (5 – 10 mins) Plunge cooked beans in ice water until cold. Drain, pat dry and reserve. Add leeks to the still boiling water and cook until they have lost their crunch. (10 – 15 min) Revive in the ice water, drain and reserve.
7. SALAD DRESSING
8. Combine the Vinegar and Mustard in a bowl, wisk in the Grapeseed and Walnut Oils. Season with the 1/4 Tsp of Salt and a few grinds of Black Pepper.
9. SALAD
10. Combine the Leeks and the chilled Beets, season with Salt & Pepper, toss in about 3/4 cup of the salad dressing. In a separate bowl, season the Haricot Verts with salt and toss to coat in about 1/4 cup of the dressing.
11. To Serve: With the Leek-Beet mixture, make a bed on 6 individual plates and top each with a bundle of Haricot Verts.
12. Make a tiny puddle of dressing in a small bowl. Divide Endive into 6 small bouquets. Take each bouquet by the stem end and swirl it in the dressing to lightly coat and place within the bundles of Haricot Verts. Arrange two pieces of Blue Cheese on each plate and top with a few toasted Walnuts.
13. ( I used blanched chives to tie the bundles of beans and Endive bouquets together.)
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