Mountain Salad with Bacon, Fontina, and Sweet-Sour Onions
Rustic and Sophisticated
Mountain Salad with Bacon, Fontina, and Sweet-Sour Onions| Dara O’Brien
By Dara O’Brien
Creative Director, Lake Isle Press
As I’ve mentioned in this space before, my relationship with salad is an I don’t really love it/I don’t totally hate it kind of thing. It’s just not my cup of tea.
At times I feel bad about that (Fiber! Antioxidants! Omega-3!), but the fact remains that I seldom order salad at a restaurant, and most of the time when I make a salad I am feeding other people. Even when I enjoy a particular salad, like this Couscous Confetti Salad or Seared Salmon With Napa Cabbage, I don’t crave it on repeat. Unlike food writer Emily Nunn (the Department of Salad) who is a self-described salad warrior, I’m what you might call a salad agnostic.
Maybe it’s the transformational nature of cooking that appeals to me. Mixing foods together and heating them changes textures and deepens flavors. Perhaps that’s why I am less likely to eat raw ingredients (Yes, I know salads are not always raw) and prefer hot food to cold (And I know salads can be warm). And it’s why I tend to trot out my underutilized salad skills only for the enjoyment of others.
Just such an occasion popped up recently when my friend invited me to a potluck dinner at her home. She was making lasagna; I was assigned a salad. I wanted to bring something a little exciting—which was a challenge, of course, since there isn’t a whole lot about salad that excites me.
When first I read the recipe for this Mountain Salad in Toni Lydecker’s book “Piatto Unico” published by Lake Isle Press, two things jumped out at me right away. First, bacon. Second, Sweet-Sour Onions, which sounded intriguing and rather un-salady. I decided to make this salad as my contribution to the party.
I had a little trouble tracking down cipolline, so I went with red pearl onions (which were, by the way, not all that easy to find). I loved the whole experience of preparing the onions: a quick boil, then peeling away the paper and boiling them again until tender, then adding butter, oil, vinegar, sugar, and salt and boiling them some more until the sauce reduced; then browning those very tender boiled onions to a satisfying char. I used only one pound although the recipe calls for two, and I still had a few left over. They served as a tasty condiment for roast pork.
As for the salad itself, we served it as a separate first course rather than as a main course side, and it got such raves that I made it again the other night for a small dinner party. I subbed shallots for pearl onions (they were just as good) and once again served it as a first course, and once again it was a hit. I am not a fan of croutons, so I left them out, and I don’t think they were missed. There was already a great mix of tastes and textures to explore.
So much so that even I liked this salad. But I am sure it’s no surprise that the onions/shallots, cooked to such tender and flavorful perfection, were my favorite part.
Mountain Salad with Bacon, Fontina, and Sweet-Sour Onions
Click here for printable recipe.
makes 4 servings | prep: 15 minutes | cook: 10 minutes
INGREDIENTS
4 strips bacon, cut crosswise into thirds
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 to 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Sea salt or kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
8 cups torn Boston lettuce or other soft greens
1 medium carrot
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes, or 1 large ripe tomato, diced
4 ounces Fontina valle d’aosta or other flavorful mountain cheese (such as Crucolo, Gruyère or Comté) cubed (about 1 cup)
Whole-grain croutons
12 sweet-sour cipolline onions (recipe follows), at room temperature
PREPARATION
Lay the bacon pieces in a skillet; cook over medium-low heat until browned and crisp, turning once. Drain on paper towels.
In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil and vinegar with a fork; season to taste with salt and pepper.
Place the greens in a large bowl. Add half of the dressing and toss well. Transfer the greens to 4 dinner plates. Using a vegetable peeler, cut carrot shavings, letting them drop onto the salads.
Scatter the cherry tomatoes, cheese, and croutons over the salads; drizzle with the remaining dressing. Arrange 3 sweet-sour onions on each plate. Lay the bacon pieces on top.
Sweet-Sour Onions
Click here for printable recipe.
makes about 24 onions | prep: 15 minutes | cook: 1 1⁄2 hours
INGREDIENTS
2 pounds cipolline (small, flat onions), pearl onions, or shallots
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
PREPARATION
Fill a medium saucepan or skillet broad enough for the onions to fit in a single layer with water; bring to a boil. Add the onions (they will bob to the top) and let them cook for about 20 seconds; drain and cool slightly. Pull off the papery outer skin; trim any dangling roots or tips but leave the root ends intact (otherwise, the onions will come apart when cooked).
Return the onions to the saucepan; add water half way up the sides of the onions. Bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer the onions for about 20 minutes, stirring at least once, until tender and about half of the water has evaporated. Add the olive oil, butter, vinegar, sugar, and salt; continue to simmer slowly, partially covered, stirring often, until the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 40 minutes.
When the onions start to sizzle, pay close attention. This is when they begin to brown—a good thing, but you must be careful not to burn them. Add a little water and reduce the heat if they seem to be cooking too quickly. When they are a burnished golden brown, consider them done.
NOTE
You’ll end up with more onions than needed for the salad—and that’s deliberate, for it’s not worth the trouble to make a smaller quantity. Serve the leftovers, reheated gently, with steak, pot roast, roast chicken—or make this insalatona again.
Recipe from “PIatto Unico” by Toni Lydecker, Lake Isle Press, 2011
Mountain Salad with Bacon, Fontina, and Sweet-Sour Onions
From “Piatto Unico”
by Toni Lydecker, Lake Isle Press, 2011
“As you have no doubt heard and observed, a real Italian meal consists of several courses. Except when it doesn’t.” —Toni Lydecker
A languorous multi-course Italian meal is a traditional and wonderful thing; in this authoritative collection, Toni Lydecker leads us to the simple beauty of the piatto unico or one-course Italian meal.
Well-balanced and packed with bold flavors, the piatto unico pairs the rustic simplicity of great Italian cooking with a modern sensibility.
ALSO FROM “PIATTO UNICO”
Couscous Confetti Salad with Tuna
Herbed Roast Pork Tenderloin with
Parsnip Puree
Pot Roast with Porcini and Root Vegetables Recipe