Oakleaf Salad w/ Pickled Shallots, Romanesco & Tahini
To be fair, I’d eat pretty much anything topped with hot toasted almonds, but this salad tops the list. With tangy pickled onions, sweetly blanched Romanesco broccoli florets (or cauliflower, if you prefer) and a creamy tahini dressing, this salad is as easy to whip together as it is delicious.
Oakleaf Salad w/ Pickled Shallots, Romanesco Slivers & Tahini
Serves 3-4 as a side
Ingredients
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
4 shallots, thinly sliced
400g Romanesco broccoli (if you don’t have Romanesco broccoli you can use cauliflower instead)
1/2 head of oakleaf lettuce
A handful of rocket
1 1/2 Tbsp capers
2/3 cup flaked almonds
For the dressing
6 cloves garlic
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp tahini paste
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp honey
All the vinegar used to pickle the shallots
Method
Put the vinegars in a small saucepan and heat until warm but not boiling. Remove from the heat and add the shallots. Stir, then leave to sit for 10 minutes. Drain the vinegar into a separate bowl (you’ll use this in the dressing in a few moments).
Separate the broccoli into individual florets, then cut each floret into thin slices (they should look a little bit like two dimensional trees!). Put the sliced broccoli in a large heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Let sit for 5 minutes, then drain and cool to room temperature.
Blend all the dressing ingredients together with a stick blender.
Wash and separate the lettuce leaves and put in a large bowl with the rocket. In another bowl, combine the sliced broccoli, capers, pickled shallots and dressing. Toss well to make sure the broccoli is evenly coated with dressing.
Right before serving, toast the flaked almonds in a frying pan until they turn golden brown and fragrant (this should only take 1-2 minutes).
Add the lettuce and rocket to the broccoli at the last minute, tossing lightly to combine, then top with the toasted almonds while they’re still beautifully crisp and hot.
