This week it’s all about celebrating the summer. We’ve been having a pretty miserable summer here in Ireland so far; but I decided to celebrate the fact that it is getting a bit brighter with a sumptuous summer salad. This salad is so refreshing with ripe juicy orange segments, peppery leaves, a hint of nuttiness and a well balanced dressing. It’s my new favourite summertime snack. This dish is inspired by a salad that we ate in Rustic Stone on a rare sunny evening in Dublin. I didn’t use all the components in their recipe so I kind of formulated my own version.
Fennel is a vegetable that people often shy away from. It has a strong aniseed flavour but when cooked correctly or shredded finely it can taste deliciously delicate. It adds such a crisp freshness to this salad which perfectly complements the zingy orange segments. It’s really worthwhile caramelising the nuts in this recipe as they maintain their crunchiness and the sweet caramel is perfect with the almost bitter citrusy leaves. The ratio of lemon and orange juice for the dressing will vary a bit. It really depends on how sweet your oranges are and how sweet /sour you prefer your dressing. It’s a bit of a taste and see, balancing act.
Here’s how
– 3 tablespoons of fresh orange juice
– 1 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
– 6 tablespoons of good olive oil
– 1 teaspoon of mustard
– sprinkle of salt and pepper
– one handfuls of rocket lettuce
– one handfuls of lamb’s lettuce
– one handful of baby spinach
– 100g of pecan halves
– 50g of sugar
– 2 oranges segmented with a sharp knife
– 1 small fennel bulb sliced with a mandolin slicer
First segment the oranges and leave to chill in the fridge. You can squeeze the remaining core of the orange into a dish to use for your dressing.
Wash and dry the lettuce in a salad spinner. Place all three in a large salad bowl. To caramelise the pecans, place them in a small non stick/cast iron frying pan and toast over a low heat. Toast for a few seconds and then add the sugar. Once the sugar has melted and the nuts are golden brown take them off the heat and place on a sheet of baking paper. Allow to cool.
Use a mandolin slicer on its finest setting to slice the fennel into thin slivers. If you haven’t got a mandolin slicer, you can of course use a sharp knife and slice as thin as you can.
To make the dressing, place the orange and lemon juice in a small jug. Add the mustard and mix in the olive oil with a mini whisk/spoon. Season with salt and pepper and taste. If you find it too sweet add a dash more lemon juice and if you find it too sour add a dash more lemon.
Mix in the shaved fennel with the salad leaves. It’s best to finish arranging this salad just before serving as otherwise it becomes a bit too soggy. I usually add just a small amount of dressing to coat the leaves of the salad and then leave a jug of dressing on the side. At the very last minute, I add the orange segments and caramlised nuts and toss together.
