Delight-fall Salad with Tarragon Caper Vinaigrette

Makes 4 side salads or 2 dinner salads

Fall salads usually conjure up images of roasted squash and assorted root veggies, but this season still has some crunch left in it.  I love squash and sweet potato as much as anyone - besides JJ of course – but you can make a lovely chop salad with autumnal bounty with nary a starchy root veg in sight (well, okay I did use a carrot – but you could leave that out).  This is also a great time of year to add apples to salads.  Unfamiliar with Pink Ladies, Rubinettes or Swiss Gourmets?  Most stores will happily cut samples for you to try.  I was recently rewarded with one such tasting and am delighted to report that it greatly influenced this dish.  I encourage you to celebrate the beautiful diversity of fresh apples available now and open your kitchen to inspiration! 

Chopped salads are great, crunchy companions to silky soups such as Sunchoke & Celeriac Soup, for which this particular salad was dreamed up.  Try it with the tarragon dressing, or change up the herbs to take this out of Provence and into Latin America with cilantro and chilis, or to Eastern Europe with dill and caraway.  As a bonus, because there aren’t any leafy greens, this salad keeps well for a day or two in the fridge after its dressed.  And see below for ways to make this salad into a satisfying meal all itself!

Orange Pippen has wonderful information about hundreds apple varieties, as well as listings for orchards in parts of North America, Europe and India. http://www.orangepippin.com/

Tarragon Caper Vinaigrette

The vinaigrette benefits from being made ahead to let the flavors from the fresh herbs infuse into the vinaigrette, so start with this.  You can chop the herbs by hand and shake them together with the other ingredients, or this is a great place to use a mini food chopper if you have one – they often come as an attachment to stick blenders.

• 2 heaping tablespoons of tarragon, finely diced by hand or chopped to fit in the processor
• 2 heaping tablespoons of flat-leaf parsley, finely diced by hand or chopped to fit in the processor
• 4 T of low sodium & sugar rice wine vinegar (adjust the quantity of agave and capers accordingly if you use another version with more/less salt & sugar)
• 2 T flax oil or other good vegetable oil
• 1 t agave nectar
• 1 t stone ground mustard or similar (not French’s)
• 1 heaping t capers
• coarse black pepper

Whir in the mini-chopper or combine in a jar with a tight-fitting lid & shake.  Taste & adjust seasoning as necessary.  Let sit for a while – 20 mins is awesome but any time is good (or even make it the night before).  Whir/shake again just before dressing the salad to re-emulsify.

Delight-fall Salad

Combine in a large bowl the following: 

• 1 small tart-sweet apple (such as rubinette or gala), cut into matchsticks
• 1 bunch radishes, quartered, sliced or matchsticks depending on size & preference
• 1 large endive, leaves removed and cut lengthwise into strips similar size to the apple
• 1 long carrot, sliced into ribbons with a vegetable peeler or matchsticks if you aren’t tired of chopping(!)
• ½ a bunch of flat-leaved parsley, stems removed and larger leaves torn or chopped roughly

Depending on your vegetable peeler you'll have thinner or thicker carrot  strips

Toss until everything is evenly distributed, then pour on the dressing & toss again.  Divide amongst four salad plates or make it a meal with the suggestions below.

Make it a Meal: 

Toss in a cup of cooked quinoa and a handful of golden raisins (or other dried fruit) and toss to distribute.  Serve on top of a handful of greens of your choice – swiss chard, spinach, arugula or watercress would be nice – and top with a handful of sliced almonds on each plate. Mmmmm.