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    Sunday, November 29, 2015

    Salad Nicoise - My Take on It

    What I love most about Salad Nicoise, is how beautiful it is. So colourful
    Also an excellent lunch dish when you are having friends over
    This was always a winner when we were on the boat.
    Some crusty bread on the side. Superb
    The good thing is that you can prep in advance
    Just assemble just before serving

    It's really up to you what you add, there are arguments. Potatoes or Not, Green Beans or not
    What must be in is Tuna, Black Olives, Capers,  Eggs, Anchovies, Crispy lettuce and Tomatoes

    So here is my take on it
    Amounts entirely up to you
    I have set some guidelines below

    1 tin good tuna in Olive oil
    1 tin Anchovies
    1 hard boiled egg per person, peeled and quartered
    1 med potato per person
    1 Red onion pickled Recipe below
    Roasted peppers
    Green beans

    Cos or Iceberg lettuce
    Handful chopped Parsley
    Cherry Tomatoes Halved 
    2-3 Tablespoons capers

    French dressing

    So preparation as follows

    Peel and chop potatoes
    Cook in salted boiling water till just tender
    Drain and toss with 2-3 tablespoons french dressing

    Red Onion
    1 red onion, peeled and finely sliced
    ½ tsp dried oregano
    5 black peppercorns
    2 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
    Juice ½ orange
    ½ tsp sea salt
    1 bay leaf
    ½ tsp ground cumin

    Bring a small pan of water to the boil
    Blanch the sliced onions for about 30 seconds
    Drain
    Place in a glass or ceramic bowl
    Cover with the other ingredients
    Marinate for at least 1 hour
    The onions will turn a vibrant pink. Pretty as.

    Roasted Pepper
    Lightly oil whole capsicums  
    Into 190C oven for about 30 minutes till skin  blisters
    Place in a bowl cover with plastic wrap and let cool
    Then pull the skin off over the bowl
    Reserve the juice
    Remove seeds and slice
    Place in a container
    Season with Sea salt and ground black pepper
    Drizzle with some Extra Virgin Olive Oil  
    Also pour over the reserved juice
    Let sit and marinate

    Green Beans
    Top and Tail beans
    Cook in boiling salted water for about 3-5 minutes till just cooked
    Drain and toss with French Dressing 
    Set aside to cool

    Tomatoes
    Cut in half, season with Salt and pepper
    Toss with some French dressing and mix in some chopped parsley

    So to serve

    Layer with lettuce on the bottom,
    then I layered down slices of capsicum
    Potatoes
    Green Beans
    Scatter over the red onions
    Cover with Cherry tomatoes
    Place quartered eggs around the outside of the platter
    Break up the Tuna and place over the top
    Dot with olives
    Lay down the anchovies

    Sprinkle over the remainder of the parsley 
    Drizzle French Dressing over the top and serve

    Once again, ... just to prove how pretty it is

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