Mâche Salad with Caramelized Pear and Pink Peppercorns
One of my all time favourite salads is mâche salad with beetroot and walnuts. The small green leaves are also known as field or corn salad and lamb's lettuce. My dressing is simple and whisked together in just a few seconds. All I need is olive oil and thick balsamic vinegar and I'm happy. This wintery salad visits our table at least once a week!
I never really plan my salads, most of the time they are spontaneous compositions depending on my mood. I just throw together whatever I find in the fridge or on my kitchen tops. Fruits, vegetables, nuts or preserves, I use what sparks my senses. It can start with a visual idea or a vision of flavours combined on a plate. Today's salad started with a pear, I looked at it and decided to caramelize it in sugary butter. There was another pretty one next to it but it was quite crisp and still a bit hard. I grated a small piece and mixed it into the vinaigrette to give it a fruity touch. A bag of pink peppercorns seemed as fitting as a box of crunchy mâche salad which was left in the fridge. I also wanted to add some walnuts as you can see in the photos but when I tried it I thought it would be too much so I left them out. Maybe you feel different about it, just give them a try!
Mâche Salad with Caramelized Pear and Pink Peppercorns
For 4 people you need
mâche lettuce, rinsed and dried, a big handful
pear, rinsed, cored and quartered, 1
butter 1 tablespoon
granulated sugar 1 tablespoon
pink peppercorns, lightly crushed in a mortar, 1-2 tablespoons
olive oil 3 tablespoons
balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons
salt and pepper
optional: walnuts for the topping
Grate about 1/8 of the pear and whisk with the olive oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Cut the remaining pear into thin wedges.
Melt the butter and sugar in a pan. Caramelize the pear wedges in the hot brown butter for about 1 minute on each side.
Divide the mâche lettuce between the plates and arrange the caramelized pear on top. Sprinkle with the dressing and the pink peppercorns and serve immediately.
Mâche, Avocado and Raspberry Salad with Honey
This week I can't get enough berries! When I see all those boxes filled with tiny colourful berries at the market I don't even know where to start. Raspberries, gooseberries, red currants, strawberries, so much to choose from! Unfortunately, they haven't reached their peak in sweetness yet due to our disastrous summer weather, but I enjoy them nonetheless. I can't wait any longer, we only have them for a few months and I don't want to miss out.
As much as I love to throw these fruits on tarts or enjoy them as a fruity nibbling alternative to chocolate, they are just as good in fresh and crunchy salads. Combined with the slices of a ripe and velvety avocado, they bring some freshness into the mix. Some mâche salad (also known as field salad or lamb's lettuce) mixed in adds some crunchy bite, perfect for those hot days which I'm still hoping for optimistically. I'll be in Malta soon, there I will definitely get my boiling hot summer weather but I won't find my delicate raspberries. Sometimes you can't have everything in life!
For the 2 of us, I spread a handful of lettuce on 2 plates and covered each of them with the slices of a quarter of a soft avocado and 8 raspberries. I wanted to keep the dressing sweet and fruity, you can use either Balsamico vinegar or raspberry vinegar (or mix the two of them). Whisk 3 tablespoons of olive oil with 2 tablespoons of vinegar, add 1/2 a teaspoon of honey and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle over your salad sparingly.
