Niçoise Salad With Creamy Balsamic Mustard Dressing

In my many years of dining out, I must’ve eaten a kajillion Niçoise salads, some excellent, some eh and some weirdly awful. There are certain things that tend to be basic to the salad, but I was in the mood for one and decided to go with a few changes in the tradition. I skipped the hard boiled egg (had eggs that morning) and I’m sorry, but I really HATE string beans in my salad. Love ’em as a side, just not in the salad. And especially, when they are barely cooked and taste raw to me. Yuck.

So, the cooked potato is a necessity to me both since it elevates this into a proper meal as well as my liking the different textures provided. This has creamy (avocado) sweet (pear) salty (mustard dressing) crunchy (cukes) and really, hits all the high notes. I zap the potato in the microwave for expediency but if you prefer to bake it or boil it, go for it. I find the consistency best in micro or oven, just sayin’.

So, I start with the potato since it’s the only thing that needs cooking in your dish.

After scrubbing and patting dry, wrap potatoes in paper towel, put on microwave dish and zap for approximately 12 minutes or till fully cooked (check in spots with a toothpick).

Set potatoes aside to cool. Onward!

Take some nice lettuce, preferably not iceberg which I find fairly tasteless but bib or boston or what I get here which is called Slonoba and is delish, wash well and dry well so dressing will adhere.

It’s not just tasty, it’s beautiful but it does sorta get buried under the other ingredients, layered on top. Just know it’s there.

Next, scrub your cherry tomatoes and cucumbers and don’t forget the pear!

Then I have this great corer which gives you 16 slices instead of eight or just slice up your pear with a sharp knife and toss with a little fresh squeezed lemon juice to keep it from discoloring and to add a fresh lemony note.

Halve the cherry tomatoes, slice the cucumbers (I have a waffle cutter garnishing tool, easy and pretty) halve and slice avocado and start your decorating process. Take a plate (or two, this was for the two of us) and start with the lettuce and place all the veggies and pear in a pretty arrangement on the plate. Chunk the potatoes (I use the skin too, yum) and place around the center. Add a nice pickle sliced in two and last but not least you drain a whole can of tuna (we only get chunk light here, so that’s what I used) very well and flip can over onto your palm, thus catching the whole round and also getting rid of the last of the broth in the can and gently placing in the center of your creation.

Now for the dressing which is so yum you will for sure use it for other salads and it’s wonderful on salmon as well.

Take out deli mustard (or wholegrain good mustard), oil, mayonnaise and balsamic vinegar. Here I like the balsamic since although it’s vinegar (sour) it has a nice hint of sweetness to it which adds a lot.

Whisk all together, adding some water to thin it out a bit (but not too much, you want the creaminess) and drizzle all over your beautiful artwork. Don’t mistake, this is a true filling meal, not a light and lively salad. It’s sure to become a fave in your house. And if you want, add a hard boiled egg, sliced up. Delicious!

Niçoise Salad With Creamy Balsamic Mustard Dressing

2 cups washed and dried lettuce
1 large (or 2 medium) cucumbers, washed, patted dry and sliced
1 red tomato,washed, patted dry and sliced
10 yellow cherry tomatoes, washed, patted dry and sliced in half
2 scrubbed baking potatoes
pickles, sliced in half
1 avocado, peeled and cut into long slices
2 cans tuna, very well drained
1 pear, patted dry and sliced in thin slices
1 piece of fresh lemon to squeeze over pear

Dressing:
3 tablespoons deli or wholegrain mustard
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon neutral oil like canola
1/3 cup of real mayonnaise
a few teaspoons of water to thin a bit

Directions:

First either microwave, boil or bake your scrubbed potatoes till fully cooked and set aside to cool. When cool, chunk into pieces.

Next, wash and dry all your vegetables and the pear. Take the pear and slice into thin slices and toss in small bowl with the lemon juice squeezed over it. Take 2 nice plates (you can scale all ingredients to more, this recipe is for 2 people).

Begin layering, first the lettuce on the bottom and at intervals the slices of avocado, pear, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. Take the drained tuna, flip onto your palm (one can at a time, per each diner) and carefully place in center of plate’s design. Surround with chunked potato and decorate with pickle.

Next take the dressing ingredients and whisk all together till smooth, adding a teaspoon of water at a time just till pourable but still thick and creamy. Drizzle all over the design but let it peek through. Presentation matters 🙂 . Dig in, feel both healthy and happy, it’s both yummy and good for you!