Salad Days

Put away the stews and say hello to summery salads! With Memorial Day and the official beginning of the season a mere week away, it's time to lighten our menus and cool off the kitchen (not to mention fitting into last year's swimsuit). A beautifully tossed green salad is at the top of everyone's Well-Dressed list, but try a few other variations beyond the lettuce and tomato standards.

GASCONY SALAD

A perfect choice of salad for tableside preparation, being fun to assemble and long on panache. A "chapon" of French bread is the heel, the crusty end part that often gets wasted after the loaf has been sliced.

1 large head of curly endive (or chicory), well washed and torn into bite-size pieces / 1 chapon of French bread, rubbed deeply with a clove of garlic / 2 T. olive oil / 1 T. red wine vinegar / tarragon, fresh or dried to taste / Salt and pepper / 3 anchovies, minced very fine

1. Place the curly endive in a large bowl along with the chapon.




2. Thoroughly blend the remaining ingredients and add to the large salad bowl.




3. Toss well until the garlic scent from the bread permeates throughout the salad.




4. Discard the chapon and serve salad on chilled plates.

REMOLACHA

A salad still popular today in Madrid and throughout Spain, this is a nice side to spicy seafood or poultry in any tomato-based sauce. At Cafe Drake we only make it about once a year, but always preceeding fried calamari.

4 beets, boiled, peeled and sliced into thin rounds / 2 cold potatoes, prepared the same / 4 scallions, green and white chopped / very small handful of parsley, chopped / 3 T. olive oil / 1 T. wine vinegar / salt and pepper

1. Place beets, potatoes, scallions and parsley in a large bowl.




2. Combine remaining ingredients into a dressing.




3. Pour dressing over vegetables and toss quickly.




4. Check for seasoning and add salt if needed.




5. Serve at once, well chilled.

WELSH LEEK SALAD

If you've never tried leeks in their raw state, you've been missing a mild delicate flavor altogether different from the cooked version. Cafe Drake makes this salad only from the freshest of leeks purchased at our local greenmarket, the thinner the better. Clean very very well as this vegetable holds loads of hidden sand and grit within its fiberous stems.

1 head Romaine lettuce, washed and torn into small pieces / 3 leeks, washed, white parts and tender green portion only, sliced razor thin / 1 large tomato, roughly chopped / 1 T. chervil, chopped / 1 T. basil, chopped / 1 T. olive oil / 2 T. cider vinegar / salt and pepper

1. Place lettuce, leeks, tomato and herbs in a large salad bowl.
2. Combine remaining ingredients to form a dressing.
3. Toss veggies with dressing until all lettuce leaves are well coated.