Salad days are here again ...
It’s Saturday, so another trip to the local market was scheduled - today we also stopped for cappuccini & cornetti (croissants). Again, we wandered through the makeshift Saturday market, again blown away by the selection of fresh and local produce - seasonal veg, olives, cheeses, cured meats and salted fish. Because it’s still early in the planting season, there was also a huge variety of "grow your own" herbs, salads, veggies and flowers - it’s quite a experience, wandering through those aisles. We came away with some amazing looking tomatoes, Gaeta olives, french string beans, a huge cos lettuce (40 cents!) and some flowers for our newly turned plots.
The weather has been very mixed, always warm, but only occasionally sunny and very often thundery at this time of year. However, we have been lucky enough to be able to eat outside on the balcony looking over the valley to Montecassino - always a delight. I don’t think I’ll ever take this view for granted!
Before
After
View from the balcony
Salad Nicoise
(yes, I know - the egg is missing!)
Ingredients -
1 large potato - peeled and chopped into small bits
16 string beans - washed, topped and tailed
4 anchovies
1/2 a jar of good quality tuna
16 black olives
A few leaves of cos lettuce, washed and chopped
1-2 ripe & delicious tomatoes - chopped into 8
Dressing -
1/2 a lemon
EVO oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Method -
Bring to the boil a pan of salted water
Add potatoes first, boil for 2 minutes, then add the beans
Prepare the rest of the salad ingredients by washing and dressing the lettuce leaves - lay them out on a flat plate in the centre
Add 4 tomatoes evenly around the edges
Lay tuna bits beside the tomato
Add anchovies
Once potato & beans are cooked lay them evenly around the plate
Add olives
Make dressing by squeezing the juice of one lemon and mix with 1 part lemon with 3 parts EVO oil, add salt and pepper to taste
Add dressing to the whole plate by spooning over
Serve with local bread