Sydney and Salad Niçoise

"You are so talented.  I had a friend like you.  She could put three dried up apple cores on a plate and make it look good."

I was talking to my neighbor's mother.  She was visiting and had just looked in the window of my hat shop which was in the neighborhood.  As she was telling me how pretty the shop was and paying me this lovely, kooky compliment, I was arranging apple cores on a plate in my head.  

Thank goodness I had a knack for arranging things.  Making hats is all about that.  It has certainly helped in my creative path.  It is also true with food.  Presentation is so important, we all know we eat with our eyes first.  One of my favorite quotes is. "Sometimes I see a plate of food and think it might be better as a hat."  Sometimes I guess you can go too far with the arranging, or at least at that point, stick to a hat.

One dish that is a bit of arranging is a Salad Niçoise.  The best salad bargain in my city is at Saul's Delicatessen.  A base of organic baby lettuces, topped with asparagus, beets, potato, hard-boiled egg and barely grilled tuna.  And a lovely herb dressing drizzled over.  You can make your own version with your favorite foods.  This is my latest.


Salad Nisçoise


Serves 2 people


2 big handfuls of mixed greens
3 tbs. olive oil
juice and zest of a small lemon
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 lb. asparagus
6 small potatoes
1 1/2 lbs. fava beans, blanched and peeled
3 slices of cooked ham, cubed

Herb Dressing; blend all ingredients together in a mortar and pestle.

1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp. finely chopped parsley
1 tsp. finely chopped marjoram
1/2 tsp. salt
3 tbs. olive oil
squeeze of lemon

Wash and spin dry the lettuces.  Whisk together together the olive oil, lemon zest and juice.  Keep chilled while you prepare the vegetables.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Trim the ends of the asparagus and peel the bottom half of the stalk with a vegetable peeler. Arrange on half of a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and a little salt.  On the other half, do the same with the potatoes.  Bake until tender.  The asparagus will be done in 10-12 minutes. Remove from the pan and stir the potatoes.  Bake the potatoes until browned, another 10-15 minutes.

Sauté the ham with the fava beans in 1 tbs. butter and 2 tbs. water.  Cook for 5 minutes until the liquid is gone.

To assemble the salad, toss together the lettuces and lemon juice dressing.  Arrange on 2 plates.  Garnish with a pile each of the asparagus and potatoes, spoon over the ham and fava beans. Drizzle the Herb Dressing over the vegetables.

Be creative with this salad.  All it needs is a little arranging.

To see the latest collection of Zazu & Violets' hats, please visit our on-line Etsy shop.