The World's Best Salad

As most of my friends know, I like to eat. What I think that many of them do not know, is that I love a really well made salad. Now, I am not talking about a bag of mix from the store with a bottle of Kraft dressing and maybe a box of croutons if you're feelin' fancy. I am talking about a well made, fresh ingredients, interesting flavors and textures, damn tasty salad. This evening, I made what I think is a really damned fine salad and thought I would share the recipe.

I would love to take credit for coming up with this, but I can't. It belongs to Chef Christine Cushing. About 8 years ago, she gave a cooking demonstration at the summer fair here in Edmonton (back when it was Klondike Days) and made this salad and gave everyone a taste. It is an awesome salad. There is some work that needs to go into it, including using your oven, but the meal is absolutely worth the effort.


Salad Ingredients
1/2 lb. (250 grams) cipollini or pearl onions peeled
2 TBSP (25 ml) olive oil
1 pint (500 ml) grape or cherry tomatoes
1 bunch of fresh baby spinach (3oz/75 grams. I find 1 box of spinach leaves from the produce cooler works great)
1 small head romaine lettuce (again, a box of baby romaine saves time and effort, portion is great)
1 cup (250 ml) Fresh basil leaves
salt & pepper to taste

Tamari-Glazed Walnuts
1TBSP (15 ml) fennel seeds
1/2 tsp (2 ml) anise seeds
1/4 tsp (1 ml) ground black pepper
1/4 cup (60 ml) tamari (or other really good quality soy sauce)
2 TBSP (25 ml) corn syrup
1 cup (250 ml) walnut halves

Dressing
1/3 cup (75 ml) extra virgin olive oil
2 TBSP (25 ml) sherry vinegar
1 tsp (2 ml) Worcestershire sauce
3/4 tsp (4 ml) grainy mustard
1/2 tsp (2 ml) honey
1/4 tsp lemon zest (2 ml)
pinch of dried oregano
salt & pepper to taste

Directions
Roast veggies -

1. Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit
2. In a medium bowl toss onions with 1 TBSP of olive oil and season with salt & pepper. Transfer to a baking sheet.Bake in oven for 10 minutes.
3. In same bowl (why dirty another?) toss tomatoes with 1 TBSP olive oil.
4. Add tomatoes to onion pan keeping them from touching (you can use 2 pans if you prefer and like doing dishes) and bake for an additional 15 minutes until onions are browning and tomatoes have split open.
5. Remove from oven and cool.
6. When cool, cut onions into quarters and set both aside till later

Make nuts -

1. Turn oven down to 350 Fahrenheit.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Roast the fennel and anise seeds. I find a couple of minutes in a small fry pan over medium high heat works. You'll know as they release their aromas more.
4. Grind or crush the fennel and anise seeds with the pepper into a powder (I use an old coffee grinder to do this, but don't use it for coffee again if you do. A mortar and pestle would also work.) Set aside.
   
5. In a bowl mix the tamari and the corn syrup.
6. Stir in 1/2 the spice mixture.
7. Add the walnuts and toss to coat with the glaze.
8. Spread the coated walnuts on the parchment paper-covered sheet.
9. Bake on top rack for 35 minutes or until glaze is almost dry, but not burned.
10. Remove the walnuts and dust with the remaining spice mixture..
11. Let cool completely and break nuts into pieces.

Make dressing -

1. In a bowl add the oil, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, honey, lemon zest, oregano, salt and pepper
2. Whisk together until they emulsify.
3. Adjust seasoning if needed (add more salt, pepper, oregano, etc)

Make salad -

1. In large bowl combine the spinach, romaine and basil leaves. (Break/tear the leaves into small, bite-sized pieces if they are large)
2. Add the tomatoes and onions.
3. Toss with the dressing.
4. Add the walnuts and serve.

I suggest serving this with some nice crusty bread and a good white wine (we had a Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc which we love). It may look like a lot of effort for a "mere salad", but trust me, this salad is absolutely worth the effort. Plus, if you know some vegetarians or vegans, this salad even works for them.