The Ugly Duckling Salad
- Level: Easy
- Yield: 4
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 4 servings
- Calories
- 401
- Total Fat
- 35
- Saturated Fat
- 3
- Carbohydrates
- 21
- Dietary Fiber
- 6
- Sugar
- 8
- Protein
- 6
- Cholesterol
- 0
- Sodium
- 580
- Total: 30 min
- Prep: 30 min
Ingredients
Dressing:
1/2 cup shelled pistachio nuts, plus more for garnish
1 to 2 cloves, garlic, peeled and roughly chopped (use 2 only if you really like garlic!)
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, (recommended: Sriracha), optional
About 1/2 cup hot water
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup canola oil
Splash good extra-virgin olive oil, for dressing
Salad:
1 bag baby spinach
1 Fuji apple, cored and sliced
1 celeriac bulb, peeled and grated (do this right before serving so it doesn't oxidize and turn brown)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Warm a small skillet over medium heat. Add pistachios, shaking the skillet frequently so that nuts don't burn. Toast until the pistachios turn a little brown. They should smell delicious too. Quickly remove the pan from the heat and transfer the nuts to a bowl; otherwise they'll keep cooking and burn.
- Add the pistachios to a blender along with the garlic, half of the lemon juice, the hot sauce, if using, hot water, a sprinkle of salt and pepper and the canola oil. Blend until smooth. If it doesn't form a paste, add more water and more oil and blend until smooth. The consistency should be like a thin hummus; don't worry if you feel like you're adding a lot of oil. Taste and add a little extra-virgin olive oil and more lemon juice if you want more zing, which I recommend. It cuts the oils from the pistachios. Set aside once you're happy with it.
- Wash the spinach and dry thoroughly, so the leaves can be coated with the dressing.
- Toss the spinach, apple, and celeriac in a large serving bowl and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Pour 1/2 of the dressing over the salad and toss again. If you prefer more dressing, add it all, which I recommend. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then garnish with pistachios and serve.