Salades des Gobelins

It’s about at this time during the course of the winter that I really begin to feel like eating some vegetables. Fortunately, inexpensive asparagus is hitting the markets so why don’t we make something using asparagus?

Most people are remarkably unimaginative when it comes to salads. Tossed green salads (which are perfectly okay), chopped salads, cole slaw, potato salad, maybe a Waldorf salad. That’s about it. Here are a couple of closely related composed salads from the French repertoire de cuisine. Enjoy! And eat your vegetables! Read this to the end—I’ll stick an easy and delicious asparagus recipe down there.

Salades des Gobelins

Serves 4

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges lengthwise
1 medium celeriac bulb, peeled and cut into ½ inch slices
1 lb. (about 12 stalks) asparagus, cleaned, woody stems trimmed, and bottom 2 inches peeled
6 oz. cooked artichoke bottoms—canned, frozen, or fresh (!)
½ lb. mushrooms, cleaned (quarter large caps)
1 cup vinaigrette
Truffles (optional)
Romaine lettuce leaves, cleaned
2 Tbsp. fresh tarragon, chopped
Salt and pepper

1. Cook the potato wedges until barely tender in microwave, steamer, or boiling water. Drain, place in bowl, add ¼ cup vinaigrette, and allow to come to room temperature.
2. Cook the celeriac until barely tender in microwave, steamer, or boiling water. Drain place in separate bowl, add ¼ cup vinaigrette, and allow to com to room temperature.
3. Cook the asparagus in microwave, steamer, or boiling water until barely cooked (boiling no longer than six minutes).
4. Now arrange your salad. On a large slightly dished serving platter place a layer of romaine lettuce leaves. Arrange a quarter of your potato wedges, a quarter of your mushrooms, a quarter of your artichoke bottoms, a quarter of your celeriac slices, and three stalks of asparagus like spokes of a wheel on your platter. Repeat alternating the next quarter of potato wedges, mushrooms, artichoke bottoms, celeriac, and asparagus until you have arranged the entire salad on the platter. Dress with the remaining vinaigrette, dot with optional sliced truffles, garnish with the chopped tarragon, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Salades Danicheff

Serves 4

Same ingredients as Salades des Gobelins with 1 cup of Mayonnaise instead of vinaigrette
2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered length-wise
½ lb. cooked crayfish, crab, or lobster

Proceed as for Salades des Gobelins. Decorate with hard-boiled eggs, optional truffles, and cooked shellfish. Now I ask you, wouldn’t nearly anything be better with a half pound of lobster?

Asparagus braised in olive oil

1 lb. of asparagus, cleaned, woody ends removed, bottom 2 inches peeled
Olive oil

1. Blanch the asparagus for 2 minutes in boiling salted water.
2. Drain and place in an oven-proof dish with a cover.
3. Drizzle the asparagus with olive oil.
4. Seal the dish tightly with aluminum foil and cover.
5. Braise in the oven at 375°F for 20 minutes.
6. Mange!