When its too hot out to eat: Farm Salad 4evah

Hello dearies.

I have been wanting to post this one for a while, and given that I just rode my bike through a December downpour in the dark, I thought I would finally unleash this jewel as a big middle finger to winter and a giant big-ups (yeah, people still say that) to sweet sweet summer.

I invented this salad when working on the farm during a summer where temperatures rose to 47 Celsius, and all we were wishing for was 72 hours of cold December rain (or at least a bitchin' rendition of November Rain). It's perfect because it's light yet filling and contains fruits, vegetable and everybody's favourite, tiny purple potatoes pan fried in butter. aww yeah.

Farm salad is something I make constantly in the summer when I'm not spending hours arranging my farmers market haul in order to take food porn pictures.The best part is that the salad evolves with the seasons and is a perfect excuse to experiment with the most beautiful, colourful produce you can find. Arranging this salad is like making art.

All the fixins:

3-4 small potatoes: purple, fingerlings or baby new
1 egg or a couple egg whites
1 handful of raw, shelled, unsalted pumpkin seed
Plateful of green: baby kale, arugula, baby chard, fava tips, pea shoots, mustard greens, tat soi, mizuna, alfalfa, yo mama (just checking)
1 small golden beet (I have a huge crush on these), cut into chunks
1 handful cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 small summer squash (yellow crookneck is quite lovely), cut into chunks
1 handful berries (blue, straw, black, rasp)
1 nectarine or a few yellow plums, cut into chunks
1 small handful of finely chopped basil and parsley
Goat cheese


Drop it like it's hot:

Roast the beets in the oven with bit of oil until tender (sometime I do a big batch of these for the many farm salads I will be eating in the coming days). Pan fry the chopped potatoes in a bit 'o butter until golden, season with salt and pepper and set aside (if you have garlic scapes on hand, fry these together an you will cry tears of joy). In the same pan scramble the egg. In a dry pan, lightly toast the pumpkin seeds until they begin to pop, but not for so long that you begin to fear for your eyes.

In the meantime, assemble the rest of the salad in an aesthetically pleasing fashion, but leaving the goat cheese out. Add the beets, potatoes, and egg. Top with crumbled goat cheese and toasted pumpkin seeds. Drizzle with the vinaigrette I always make (see below) and congradulate yourself on how fast, easy, healthy and beautiful your dinner is. Now, go for a swim.

The vinaigrette I always make:

1 part extra virgin olive oil
2 parts balsamic vinegar
2 tbs dijon mustard (with horseradish if you are of the Eastern European persuasion)
2 tbs pure maple syrup
fresh ground pepper

Put everything in a jar and shake it until combined.

Seriously, even though this seems like your regular salad, there is something about the combination of the greens and fruit with the acidity of the dressing, the creaminess of the goat cheese, and the hardiness of the potatoes and egg that just make this the most well-balanced salad I've ever had. whew. I can't believe I managed to mention every ingredient in one sentence. Good for me...AND good for you. Enjoy.

***Oma's tip or this recipe: When I was a girl we ate this salad everyday uphill both ways, barefoot.