Treasured #Recipes from the Past: Classic Summer Side #Salads

Gram's Recipes

Summer is my favorite time of year – family picnics, outdoor BBQs, trips to the park or lake, birthday and graduation parties and alfresco dining on the back patio. On a recent trip home to visit my family, I found a treasured recipe book of my Grandmother’s family recipes that I grew up with and I couldn’t resist sharing some of them with you.

Grams Recipe Book

I found a few classic summer side salads that are perfect for an outdoor picnic or BBQ – fresh, tasty and most of all they remind me of home when my family made these for our own Summer parties gathered around the table. In fact, the Broccoli Salad was such a hit that it made it to TWO parties in one week! Enjoy. (and stay tuned for future posts with more of my Grandma’s recipes!)

Broccoli Salad
Broccoli Salad

Five Bean Salad

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 4-6

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch fresh green beans, trimmed
  • 1 bunch fresh yellow wax beans, trimmed
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can garbanzo beans
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can cannelloni beans
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can kidney beans
  • 1/2 a large red onion, diced
  • 2 large stalks of celery, diced
  • 1 green bell pepper, diced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • Dash of Nature's Seasoning
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar or 1/8 cup Stevia
  • 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • fresh parsley, chopped for garnish

Instructions

  1. Cook fresh green beans and yellow wax beans and let cool.
  2. Drain and rinse the garbanzo beans, cannellini beans and kidney beans.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, toss together the beans, red onion, celery, and green pepper.
  4. In a separate small mixing bowl, whisk together the salt, pepper, sugar (or Stevia), and red wine vinegar until the sugar is dissolved. Gradually stream in the olive oil, whisking constantly until it all comes together.
  5. Pour the dressing over the beans and veggies, and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate, before serving. For best results, refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
  6. Toss the bean salad with the dressing once more and garnish with fresh parsley before serving.
https://www.theartfulgourmet.com/2012/07/treasured-recipes-from-the-past-classic-summer-side-salads/

Antipasto Salad
Antipasto Salad

Antipasto Salad

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Yield: 4-6

Ingredients

  • 1 pound medium shells or rotini pasta
  • 1/2 pound provolone or fontina cheese
  • 1/4 pound hard salami
  • 1/4 pound pepperoni
  • 1/4 pound prosciutto
  • 1 small can black olives
  • 1 small jar green or kalamata olives
  • 3 tomatoes (sub Sun-dried tomatoes, chopped)
  • 1 green or red pepper, diced
  • 3 stalks celery, chopped
  • 1 small sweet onion, diced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 cup cider or wine vinegar
  • Fresh basil or oregano leaves for garnish

Instructions

  1. Cook macaroni. Cut provolone, salami, and pepperoni into small bite size pieces. Slice olives. Cut tomatoes into bite-size pieces. Chop onion, pepper and celery. Combine all ingredients, toss and chill overnight. Add provolone cheese and a sprinkle of parmesan, basil or oregano leaves just before serving and season with salt and pepper to taste.
https://www.theartfulgourmet.com/2012/07/treasured-recipes-from-the-past-classic-summer-side-salads/

 

Italian Potato Salad
Italian Potato Salad

Italian Potato Salad

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 4-6

Ingredients

  • 6-8 medium Salt or Red Potatoes, skin on and cut into halves or wedges.
  • 1 can drained green beans
  • 1 sliced large red or vidalia onion
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano or Italian seasoning
  • Sliced green onions, for garnish

Instructions

  1. Boil potatoes in salted water and drain, cool and set aside. Cut cooled potatoes into halves or wedges and add green beans and onion. Drizzle mixture with olive oil, red wine vinegar and a small amount of balsamic vinegar, to taste. Add salt and pepper, oregano or Italian seasoning, and blend well into the salad. Let salad marinate in the refrigerator and serve room temperature garnished with green onions.
https://www.theartfulgourmet.com/2012/07/treasured-recipes-from-the-past-classic-summer-side-salads/

 

 

Salad Niçoise for a Spring Day

Salad Nicoise
Salad Nicoise

Spring is about unearthing fresh things. Lighter things. Brighter things. Turning a new leaf. Dusting off and starting new. There’s something so refreshing about a lovely, fresh, healthy salad on a Spring Day and what better time to make one of my favorites: Salad Niçoise.

Salad Nicoise is known as a compound salad made with eggs, potatoes, green beans, salad greens, fresh tuna and Niçoise olives arranged in a colorful display. The salad is made with a Tarragon Vinaigrette for the potatoes and with a Red wine vinaigrette drizzled over the entire salad platter at the end. We start by making the vinaigrette dressings, then boil the potatoes, beans, eggs in separate pots. The tomatoes are blanched for a minute and then cooled in an ice bath for peeling and quartering. The fresh tuna is seared in olive oil over a high heat until it has a crispy crust and then cut into slices. This recipe makes a large serving for 6-8 people which can be halved if you’re serving for a smaller crowd (or quartered if just making this lovely dish for yourself!)

Salad Nicoise for a Spring Day

Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

  • Tarragon Vinaigrette:
  • 3 tbsp tarragon wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • ¾ cup olive oil
  • 1 large shallot, finely minced
  • ¼ c or more chopped fresh tarragon
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Red Wine Vinaigrette:
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • ¾ cup olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
  • 3 tbsp minced fresh green herbs (basil, parsley or tarragon)
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Salad:
  • 3 cups (2 lbs) red-skinned potatoes
  • ¼ c. dry white wine
  • 3 c (1 lb) baby green beans (haricots verts)
  • 3-4 tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp canola or vegetable oil
  • 1 lb fresh tuna (or 2 cans imported tuna in olive oil)
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 head Boston lettuce leaves, washed, drained and dried
  • 3 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and quartered
  • 6 anchovy fillets, soaked in water for 20 minutes and cut lengthwise
  • ½ cup Nicoise olives

Instructions

  1. Make the tarragon vinaigrette. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and mustard. Whisk until well blended. Slowly, in a thin stream, add the oil, whisking constantly, until it is emulsified into the vinegar and mustard. Stir in the shallot and tarragon and season with salt and pepper. Reserve.
  2. Make the red wine vinaigrette. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and mustard. Whisk until well blended. Slowly, in a thin stream, add the oil, whisking constantly, until it is emulsified into the vinegar and mustard. Stir in the garlic and fresh herbs and season with salt and pepper. Reserve.
  3. Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook until just done, about 20 mins. Drain in a colander and allow the potatoes to cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, cut the potatoes into ¼ inch slices or a medium dice. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and pour the wine over. Toss to coat and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. When the potatoes are completely cool, drain them of any excess wine and toss them with the tarragon vinaigrette. Reserve.
  4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Trim the beans at the stem end leaving the tails intact. Add the beans to the boiling water and cook until just done, about 5 mins. Remove the beans with a slotted spoon, reserving the water. Drain and refresh under cold water. Drain again.
  5. Return the salted water to a boil. Core the tomatoes and make an X in the bases just deep enough to score the skin. Fill a large bowl with ice and water and have it nearby. When the water boils, add the tomatoes and blanch them for 1 minutes. With a slotted spoon, immediately transfer the tomatoes to the ice bath. When cool, remove the skins and cut the tomatoes into quarters and eighths.
  6. To prepare the fresh tuna, in a heavy skillet heat the oil over a high heat. Lightly salt and pepper the tuna and sauté until the fish has a golden crust and is rare to medium-rare in the center, 2-3 minutes per side. Cool and cut into slices or 1 inch cubes.
  7. To assemble the final presentation of the salad: drizzle the beans and tomatoes with some of the red wine vinaigrette. If using canned tuna, lightly flake and toss with the vinaigrette lightly. Place the lettuce leaves around the edge of the salad platter. Drape the eggs with the anchovies. Arrange the tomato alternately with the olives, eggs and string beans. Mound the potato salad on the platter.
  8. Arrange the tuna next to the potatoes and drizzle the remaining red wine vinaigrette over all. Serve.
https://www.theartfulgourmet.com/2011/04/salad-nicoise-for-a-spring-day/