My Favorite Fall Salad
Bitter, sweet, salty and tart, this salad is simple and easily one of my favorites to serve at fall dinner parties. For a lunch entree, pile the dressed salad on a platter, arrange slices of leftover cold roast chicken alongside and garnish with an extra drizzle of vinaigrette.
Endive, Celeriac & Avocado Salad
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 medium celery root (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 2-inch-long matchsticks
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons hazelnut oil
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt
- Ground white pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons minced chives
- 4 Belgian endives, trimmed and sliced crosswise 1/2 inch thick
- 2 Hass avocados—halved, pitted and scooped into 1/2-inch chunks
Instructions
In a large bowl, whisk the olive oil with the lemon juice and salt. Add the celery root and toss to combine. Refrigerate for 1 hour and up to 6 hours, until the celery root has softened slightly.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the mustard with the vinegar, then gradually whisk in both oils until incorporated. Whisk in the cream and season with salt and white pepper. Stir in the minced chives.
Cut the bottom quarter off the endive bulbs and discard, cut the bulbs crosswise in half-inch widths. Place in the bowl with the celeriac. Cut the avocados in half and remove the stones carefully with a kitchen knife. Hold the halves in your palm, and using a spoon, ‘cut’ chunks of avocado from the skins and place in the bowl with the endive and celery root. They will all be shaped differently, don’t worry.
Add half of the vinaigrette, season with salt and white pepper and toss. The magic of this salad is that some of the avocado will melt into the salad, don’t try preventing that. Serve, passing additional vinaigrette at the table.
Photograph by Madeleine Hill.
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