Liz’s Bistro Salad

Crunchy and light. Bright, crisp, and fresh. This French-inspired salad makes a great side dish for any meal. Fresh herbs, pickled onion, and delicate vinaigrette are topped with tender greens.

This is a study of simplicity. The salad is made up of greens, herbs, and pickled onions. That’s it. It’s a love letter to all things green.

Here’s the reason I love it so much:

The salad is a perfect balance of light, crunchy, and delicate. The herbs are fresh but not overpowering, the pickled onion is there but not too loud, and the butter lettuce is torn into small pieces and then finely chopped.

Ingredients

Pickled Onions

•  1 Red onion Thinly sliced
•  1/4 White or red wine vinegar
•  1/2 Water
•  A pinch of Salt. You can also find out more about the following: Sugar

Bistro Salad

•  1 Romance heart The stem is removed and chopped
•  Half a Head of butter lettuce. The stem was gently removed.
•  2 Tablespoons Fresh minced Tarragon
•  1/2 Fresh Dill Chop or tear
•  1/4 Fresh chives, minced

Vinaigrette

•  1/2 Canola oil (see notes)
•  Three tablespoons Lemon juice More to Taste
•  Half a teaspoon Salt
•  One teaspoon Sugar
•  One teaspoon Dijon mustard or mayo This is done to emulsify dressing

Instructions

1. Pickled Onions: Place onions in a glass jar, fill about a third with vinegar, and then top with Water. Add the Salt and sugar and shake. Keep in the refrigerator for a couple of hours or days. If you are short on time, I’d recommend 30 minutes at the very least.
2. Vinaigrette: Shake all ingredients in a glass jar. This dressing should be bright and mellow. We’ll add a lot of herbs and onions to the salad, so it’s fine if this is a little chilled. If you are making this ahead, keep it in the refrigerator.
3. Salad: Chop the romaine and the herbs and tear the lettuce leaves into bite-sized pieces.
4. Toss the salad: Just prior to serving, combine the greens, herbs, and pickled onions with the dressing. Start by adding about half the sauce in the jar and add more as needed.
5. Serve. Taste, adjust, and add Salt and pepper according to your Taste. It’s fresh, tender, bright, and a bit puckery. It’s so new.