Salad Nicoise

Makes 4-6 servings

My child has always had sophisticated taste-food, wine and fashion. When we traveled to Paris in 1982, we both developed a love for this salad. This is my updated version.

ingredients

For dressing
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons minced shallot
2 teaspoons Dijon bustard
1 large garlic clove, minced and mashed to paste
1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional but wonderful)
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons minced Thyme (use Lemon Thyme if you can)
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh mint
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoons finely ground sea salt
For salad
3/4 lbs. green beans (haricot verts if you can find them) trimmed
1 1/2 lbs. small potatoes (red or Yukon gold)skin left on
1 1/2 lbs (1 inch thick) tuna steaks
2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon lemon juice blended together for brushing
1/4 cup capers drained well
2 heads Boston lettuce torn into manageable pieces
1 pt. cherry or grape tomatoes
1 cup assorted Nicoise and Greek olives pitted
4 hard boiled eggs, quartered

directions

1
I typically boil the potatoes, eggs and steam the green beans a day ahead, chilling until ready to assemble the salad. If you are preparing these the same day, plan to do this step at least one hour before serving
2
Dressing can also be made a day ahead and re-blended right before serving.
3
Dressing: Whisk together vinegar, shallot, mustard, garlic and anchovy in small bowl until combined well. Add oil in a slow stream, whisking until emulsified (you can also use food processor but it is important that you do not blend the oil in at the start). Add Thymen, basil, salt and pepper to taste.
4
Quarter potatoes, eggs, and cut green beans in half-set aside till you are ready to assemble
5
Cooking tuna-I like to add a little extra flavor by rubbing the tuna with a blend of 1 tablespoon ground sea salt, 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper. Coat both sides before grilling. Grill tuna to your desired level of done-I prefer medium rare. Slice on a diagonal or break into medium size pieces. Set aside
6
Drain olives and capers and then set aside
7
Break lettuce into bite size pieces, wash and pat dry
8
On a large platter begin your assembly as follows
9
Arrange lettuce to cover the whole platter
10
Arrange all your ingrediants except capers in rows, working out from the center. I like to put the tomatoes in the center and arrange my rows out from there. I also think about color and contrast as I arrange this salad.
11
Sprinkle capers over all the ingredients and drizzle a very small amount of dressing over all the ingredients just to coat.
12
Serve with dressing on the side!

notes

The beauty of this salad is that you arrange in on a large platter anitpasti style and guests can take all or some of the ingrediants they like. Serve dressing on the side and let everyone control the amount they like. Perfect with warm French bread!

Source: Mom