Tag: olive oil

Nicoise Tuna Bean Salad (Gluten-Free, Dairy Free)

Nicoise tuna bean salad is an easy meal prep recipe for weekday lunches. A brightly flavored lemon-mustard dressing makes it extra delicious.

I’m a sucker for cute packaging. I know it’s silly, but they always draw me in. For some reason, tuna of all things always seems to have the cutest cans! The Trader’s Joes packaging is especially adorable, but I also love this Bella Portofino packaging. (I got these as samples, but you can buy it at Shop Rite.)

The problem is that I usually buy tuna, then let it sit in my cabinet for ages before finally tossing it into some pasta sauce with capers and feta. Which is delicious, but a little boring.

Back in the summertime, I had a delicious Nicoise salad with seared tuna at Busboys & Poets in DC. It had a bright, lemony dressing that reminded me of the ones in my mayo-free chicken salad. I was inspired to use those same flavors in this tuna and bean salad that’s perfect to prep ahead for a week of packable lunches.

This salad is really simple, and it’s the kind of recipe that gets better as it sits in the fridge and the flavors meld. It has a fantastic combination of creamy, salty, fresh, and tangy flavors.

Since the ingredients are so simple, it’s important to use the best ingredients you can. I use fresh green beans, heirloom tomatoes, and organic lemons. I always look for tuna that’s packed in olive oil instead of water, but you can use whatever your favorite happens to be. Tuna in oil has a little more fat, but I personally think it has a better texture (more silky, less dry) and a more mellow flavor that makes it worth it.

if you have them, this salad is also delicious with two chopped hard boiled eggs mixed in. I don’t usually bother only because I hate making them.

Nicoise Tuna Bean Salad

Serves 4

Ingredients

1/4 pound fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 can tuna, preferably packed in oil, drained
1 cup diced fresh tomatoes
1/4 cup Nicoise or kalamata olives, pitted
2 celery ribs, thinly sliced
2 lemons, juiced
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 shallot, minced
2 Tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until bright green and tender crisp. Drain and immediately run under cold water to stop the cooking process.

In a medium bowl, combine the green beans, chickpeas, tuna, tomatoes, olives, and celery. Mix well.

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, mustard, shallot, and olive oil. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or refrigerate.

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Green Chile Pesto and Roasted Chayote Squash Side Dish – Thanks, Rick!

If you’re going to steal one Rick Bayless recipe, you might as well steal two, which is exactly what I did here with this green chile pesto, and roasted chayote squash side dish. Like I said in the video, most great chefs encourage this type of thievery, as long as you give them credit, which I’m happy to do.

What I’m calling “Green Chile Pesto,” is really his Green Chile Adobo, but I thought my audience would better relate to a “pesto,” since that’s what this reminds me of the most. Although, I’m not sure how it would be in a pasta, and don’t have any immediate plans to find out.

What it was great in, was this very simple chayote squash dish, which is really more of a warm salad. If you can find chayote near you, I recommend you give it a try, but if not, grilled zucchini or other summer squash would also work, as would something like roasted acorn or delicata squash.

I’d try to choose a fairly mild olive oil for this, since we have enough heat and bitterness from the peppers. Which reminds me, don’t over blend this. While some chefs claim it’s just a wives tale, I’ve found that if you over-process an olive oil-based sauce, especially ones with garlic in them, it can get very bitter. Other than that, not much can go wrong, and so on behalf of Chef Bayless and myself, I’d like to say, we really do hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for the Green Chile Pesto:

6 Serrano peppers

1 Poblano pepper

6 cloves garlic, still in the paper

1 bunch cilantro

1/2 bunch Italian parsley

1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or about 3/4 teaspoon fine salt)

3/4 cup mild tasting olive oil, or vegetable oil

juice from 2 fresh limes*

* You can add the lime right to the pesto if you’re going to use it all at once as a sauce for something, but this seems to keep longer in the fridge without it added in, and so I prefer to add it to whatever I’m using it with instead.

For the Chayote Squash Side Dish:

3 Chayote squash, cut in 1-inch pieces

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

juice from 1 lime (unless already added to your pesto)

2 or 3 heaping spoons of Green Chile Pesto

1/3 cup crumble soft goat cheese, plus more for the top

pumpkins seeds to garnish, optional

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Wheat Berry and Cherry Tomato Salad

Wheat berry or wheatberry is the whole grain form of wheat, this is not yet refined, so it means this is intact with all the nutrients compared to the refined one. I like the chewy texture and the nutty taste of wheat berry.

Ingredients:

2 cups wheat berry

6 cups water (add if needed)

2 cups cherry tomato

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoon olive oil (extra virgin)

1/2 cup chopped parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Put the water and wheat berry in a pot then boil until tender. Drain and let cool.

2. Put the cooked wheat in a mixing bowl, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

3. Serve and enjoy with your favorite fried or grilled meat.