Summer Salads
Finally summer! That best of all seasons in Maine, if you ignore black
flies, mosquitos and tourist traffic jams. These small inconveniences aside,
the sky is blue and the fresh air just beckons to outdoor activities, picnics
and even meals al fresco in your own
back yard or patio.
As tomato and eggplant planting time
arrived on my patio, I was delighted to discover that the arugula seeds sown
there early in May had yielded a bountiful crop of tender slightly peppery leaves
to harvest for salads and sandwiches. Container gardening on the patio was
truly a delight so close to the house. There were even a dozen or so radishes
thrusting their red globes from a pot that was destined for the more tender
summer plants. With a bunch of chives from another pot, this made a wonderful
salad dressed lightly with a sour cream/rice vinegar dressing.
In general though creamy dressings are
best left for salads to be consumed relatively quickly, since prolonged exposure
to summer heat can turn a delicious mayonnaise or cream dressed salad into an
evening of unpleasant stomach upset. The microbial world loves to colonize
those same low acidity dressings and has the ability to multiply/divide every
20 minutes. Oil, vinegar and lemon juice make a more reliable venue for those
wonderful summer salads likely to sit out for prolonged periods of time.
Radish, cucumber
and snap pea salad
Trim and wash 1/3 lb sugar snap peas
and halve diagonally. Cook peas in salted water for 30 seconds and drain. Wash
and trim 1 bunch of radishes and slice in ¼ inch slices. Trim and halve 1
medium English cucumber and slice in ¼ inch slices. Dressing: 1 tsp. cider vinegar, rice vinegar and light soy sauce
each, ½ tsp. toasted sesame oil. Toss radishes, cucumber and snap peas with the
dressing and ¼ cup toasted sesame seeds (black sesame seeds will give extra eye
appeal). Season with salt and pepper if needed.
White bean and
Chorizo Salad
Cook 2 hard-boiled eggs and allow to
cool. In a bowl combine: 1 drained 15 oz can of small white beans, ¼ cup finely
chopped Italian parsley and red bell pepper each, 3 oz. finely diced
ready-to-eat chorizo link and 2 scallions with greens finely sliced. Dressing: 3 tblsp. olive oil, 3 tblsp.
sherry vinegar, ¼ tsp. dried oregano and 1/8 tsp. cumin seeds, salt and pepper
let stand to blend 10 minutes. Toss vegetables with dressing and arrange on
Boston lettuce leaves on a plate. Garnish with quartered hard-boiled eggs along
the edge of the plate and ¼ cup pitted Calamata olives. Thinly slice 2 radishes
and sprinkle on top.
Lentil
salad with dill and tomato
Bring 4 cups salted water to boil in a 2 qt pot and add 1 cup French
green or black Beluga lentils and cook until just tender about 20 minutes. Drain
and transfer to a large bowl. Toss lentils with: 4 large scallions thinly
sliced, 2 cups chopped tomatoes.1/4 cup
chopped fresh dill and ¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil. Dressing: ¼ cup grapeseed or olive oil, 5 tblsp. red wine vinegar,
¼ tsp. red pepper flakes, 1 minced clove of garlic and ½ tsp. salt. Allow
dressing to blend for 15 minutes and toss with salad together with ¼ cup
crumbled Feta cheese.
As Gershwin so eloquently stated in Porgy and Bess: “Summertime and the
living is easy…….”
(I. Winicov
Harrington lives in coastal Maine and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and
Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website:
www.winicov-harrington.com)
