Six O’Clock Solution: Salade Niçoise wins top dollar for new cookbook

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Liven up your salads with one of the 75 recipes in the beautifully illustrated book Sensational Salads by London cookbook author Cathy Cordalis (Ryland Peters & Small/Firefly, $24.99).

After informative pages on salad greens and how to make delicious salads and dressings, Cordalis begins “The Classics” with more than 75 recipes, including today’s recipe. See his Wikipedia online for the story of the famous Nice man, which dates back to the French city of Nice.

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Cordalis will inspire you to add even more variety to your salad making, especially with the idea of ​​foods that can turn a salad into a meal (meat, fish, cheese, roasted vegetables, nuts, legumes).

She advises squeezing the air out of plastic bags containing vegetables to keep them fresh.

London photographer Mowee Kaye adds stunning photography to the cookbook.

Salad Niçoise

For 4 people

dressing:

1 teaspoon sea salt (5mL)

1 whole garlic clove, peeled

Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon (5mL)

1 tablespoon (15 mL) white wine vinegar

6 tablespoons (90mL) olive oil

1 tablespoon (15 mL) fresh chopped herbs*

freshly ground pepper

*Chervil, chives, flat leaf parsley, and basil are recommended.

salad:

2 cups halved cherry tomatoes (500 mL/pint box)

1 medium cucumber, sliced

1 pound (500 g) new potatoes, cooked and sliced

1-1/2 cups (375 mL/150 g) green beans, cooked and sliced ​​in half

4-6 green onions (thinly sliced)

2 cans of tuna (170 g/8 oz each)

4 boiled eggs (peeled and cut into quarters)

1 can of anchovies (50g/1-3/4oz/approx. 8 slices)

1 cup (250mL/100g) seedless black olives

crispy bread

butter

dressing: Grind the sea salt into a powder in a mortar and pestle, add the garlic and mix to form a smooth paste. (You can also use a food processor instead.)

Add the mustard, followed by the vinegar and a little pepper, stirring until the salt is dissolved.

Stir in the oil, then add the herbs.

Just before adding the dressing to the salad, pour the dressing into a screw-top jar and shake vigorously to mix.

salad: In a large bowl, toss together the tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, beans, and onions, then drizzle with some of the dressing.

Arrange the tuna chunks and egg quarters on top. Add anchovies and olives. Finally, add the dressing and it’s done.

Serve with fresh bread and butter.

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