Salad Of Tart Greens With Prosciutto And Warm Balsamic Vinaigrette Recipes

SALAD OF TART GREENS WITH PROSCIUTTO AND WARM BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• NB: I usually decrease the amount of olive oil to 1/3 cup and use the full 6 tablespoons of balsamic Assembling the salad: Soak onions in 1/2 cup red wine vinegar for 30 minutes to decrease sharpness. Tear lettuce into bite sized pieces. Toss lettuce with all but 3 tablespoons of the pine nuts, scallions, 1/2 of cheese, 1/2 of prosciutto, and all of basil. Making the dressing: In a medium skillet, slowly cook the garlic in the olive oil over low heat for about 8 minutes, until garlic barely colored. Remove garlic with slotted spoon and reserve. Turn to medium-high heat and add vinegars. Cook a few moments until acid is diffused slightly. Add brown sugar to taste & bubble slowly for 1 minute. Taste for sweet/tart balance and adjust with more balsamic vinegar or sugar to taste. If too sharp, let boil for a few minutes. Stir in reserved garlic and season with salt and pepper. To serve: Top with drained onion and scatter rest of pine nuts, cheese, and prosciutto over the salad. Reheat the dressing, stir vigorously to blend, and spoon over the salad. Serve immediately.

WARM GREENS WITH BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• In tightly covered container, shake all vinaigrette ingredients until well blended. Makes 1 cup vinaigrette; use 1/3 cup for this recipe.
• In 10-inch nonstick skillet, heat 1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette to boiling over medium heat. Cook mushrooms in vinaigrette 3 minutes; remove from heat.
• Add remaining salad ingredients. Toss 1 to 2 minutes or until greens begin to wilt. Serve immediately. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper if desired.

WARM GARLIC BALSAMIC DRESSING

Steps:

• In a medium skillet combine garlic, oil and some salt and pepper. Cook over medium low until garlic is soft and very light. (If it darkens, it will turn bitter. Throw everything away and start again.) Add the vinegars and sugar. Simmer 2 to 3 minutes.
• Taste by cooling a sample first (it will be very hot), and seeing if there's soft acidity and good sweet/tart balance. If too, acid, continue simmering. If acid is lacking, add a little more vinegar.
• Remove from heat, cover and hold until shortly before serving (up to 3 hours). Taste again, adjusting seasonings if necessary.
• Heat up and spoon over salad.