Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club
Explore Recipes Sides & Salads Page 30

Pear Salad with Blue Cheese, Olive Oil, and Mint

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

South of Melbourne is Tasmania’s King Island, recognized around the world for its outstanding dairy products. One of them is a particularly unctuous waxed blue cheese known as “Roaring 40s Blue.” It is named after the punishing 100 km/hr winds (62 mph) that bedevil the latitude of 40°S. If unavailable, substitute your favorite blue cheese, such as gorgonzola or Roquefort.

Ingredients

  • 2 large ripe red Bartlett pears, halved, cored, and cut into thick wedges
  • Sea salt, to taste
  • 8 ounces blue cheese, preferably from King Island, brought to room temperature and cut into wedges
  • 12 dates, pitted
  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
  • 1/4 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
  • 1 teaspoon pink peppercorns, toasted and lightly crushed
  • Eight 1/2-inch-thick slices country-style white bread

Directions

Divide the pears among 4 salad plates and season with salt. Arrange a wedge of cheese and 3 dates on each plate. Drizzle with the olive oil and garnish with the mint and peppercorns. Serve with the sliced country bread for dipping in the olive oil.

Serves 4 — Recipe adapted from Mallmann on Fire by Francis Mallmann (Artisan 2014)

Barramundi a la Vinaigrette

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

One of the most pleasurable evenings I ever spent in Australia was cooking dinner in the kitchen of food entrepreneur Melissa Wong and her husband, Robert. A simple vinaigrette, whipped up in minutes and serving as a salad dressing, a marinade, and a sauce, is the unifying factor in this dish. If you can’t find barramundi—a popular fish down under—halibut, cod, or another mild white fish is equally delicious. The quick-pickled red onions are a great condiment for this and many other dishes.

Ingredients

For the pickled onions:

  • 1 medium red onion
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar 
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt

For the vinaigrette:

  • Juice and zest of a lemon
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper 
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs, such as dill, flat-leaf parsley, and oregano

For the main dish:

  • 4 barramundi fillets, each 6 to 8 ounces
  • 4 loosely packed cups of baby arugula, spinach, or mixed greens 
  • 12 cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 2 Persian cucumbers, diced
  • 1 lemon, quartered

Directions

Step 1

Make the pickled onions: Thinly slice the red onion into rings and place them in a pint canning jar. Bring the water and apple cider vinegar to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the sugar and salt and pour the liquid over the onions. Let cool to room temperature before serving. 

Step 2

Make the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice, vinegar, honey, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Whisk until the salt and honey dissolve. Slowly add the olive oil, continuously whisking until the vinaigrette emulsifies. Stir in the minced herbs. Taste the vinaigrette, adding more vinegar or salt and pepper as desired. Pour 2/3 of the vinaigrette into a separate container and set aside.

Step 3

Place the fish fillets on a rimmed sheet pan and lightly brush both sides with the 1/3 of the vinaigrette from the mixing bowl. Season lightly with salt and pepper. 

Step 4

Toss the greens, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved vinaigrette to lightly coat and divide among 4 plates. Top with equal amounts of the pickled onions. 

Step 5

Light a grill or preheat a well-oiled stovetop grill pan to medium-high. Arrange the fillets, skin side down, on a well-oiled grill grate or in the preheated pan. Cook until the edges begin to turn opaque, 2 to 3 minutes for thin fillets and 4 to 5 minutes for thicker fillets. Carefully turn and cook the other side until the fish is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes more, taking care not to overcook them. Arrange a fillet on each of the prepared plates. Drizzle with the reserved vinaigrette and garnish each plate with a lemon quarter. 

Yields 4 servings.

Tuna and White Bean Salad

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

This Mediterranean dish combines two great brain foods, olive oil and omega-3-rich tuna, and gets a protein and fiber boost from the beans.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups cooked white beans, such as cannellini or Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed if canned 
  • 1 cup diced celery hearts plus a few celery leaves for garnish 
  • 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced 
  • 1 small red onion, finely sliced crosswise 
  • 1 clove garlic, finely minced
  • 15 to 20 pitted brine-cured kalamata olives, halved
  • 2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley
  • 4 to 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice or red wine vinegar, or more to taste
  • Sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper 
  • Head of romaine lettuce
  • 12 ounces tuna, either fresh and seared or the highest-quality canned, flaked

Directions

Step 1

In a mixing bowl, combine the beans, celery hearts, bell pepper, onion, garlic, olives, and parsley.

Step 2

Add the olive oil, lemon juice or vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix gently with a rubber spatula. Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding more olive oil, lemon juice or vinegar, salt, and pepper as needed. 

Step 3

Rinse the romaine lettuce leaves, slice them into ribbons, and arrange in four salad bowls.

Step 4

Top with equal amounts of the salad mixture and the flaked tuna. Garnish with celery leaves and serve. 

Yields 4 servings.

Calabrian Pumpkin Soup

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

Simple but sublime is the pumpkin soup my Merry Band of Tasters and I were served when visiting the Librandi family, one of Calabria’s outstanding olive oil producers. “Mama” Librandi shared the recipe with me.

Ingredients

  • 1 3-pound pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled, with seeds and membranes removed 
  • 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 2 tablespoons water 
  • Sea salt
  • Croutons for garnish (see the “Healthy Ingredient Spotlight” below) 

Directions

Step 1

Using a sturdy knife, cut the pumpkin or butternut squash into roughly 1.5” cubes. Do the same with the potatoes.

Step 2

In a medium saucepan, combine the pumpkin, potatoes, the 3 tablespoons of olive oil, and the water. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until tender—50 to 60 minutes.

Step 3

Transfer to a blender jar and purée until smooth (don’t fill the blender more than half full—work in batches if necessary). Salt to taste.

Step 4

Divide the soup between warmed soup bowls. Drizzle generously with additional olive oil, and garnish with croutons. 

Yields 6 appetizer or 4 main course servings