Serves 4 as a light main course or 6 as a starter — Adapted from Fine Cooking
The combination of ingredients and the vinaigrette are what's most important here, not the specific amounts. Once you've made the recipe, you'll be able to toss everything together more quickly the next time.
These crisp potatoes taste great on their own, and the flavorful dressing is nice on other salad greens too. Use what you have: regular potatoes will work fine, as will yellow or white onions. A combination of those cute little yellow and red pear tomatoes would look very pretty here. Chunks of larger tomatoes will give you a juicier salad. To make this a more substantial meal, simply add some slices of leftover grilled chicken or steak. As always, I urge you to seek out local and organic ingredients. They really do make a difference.
Ingredients:
8 ounces baby arugula (about 12 loosely packed cups), washed and spun dry (or chopped romaine lettuce)
3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives (about 15), finely chopped
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon plus 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, divided
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh garlic (optional)
1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tablespoons water
1 pound red or Yukon Gold new potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 3 cups)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup finely diced red onion
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (1 scant cup)
8 ounces small ripe cherry (or grape or pear) tomatoes, halved (1 heaping cup)
Optional: Grilled chicken or steak
Instructions:
Place the arugula in a large bowl.
In a food processor (I use the small inset bowl on my 12-cup food processor), pulse the vinegar, olives, mustard, 1 teaspoon of the thyme, and the garlic (if using). While processing, slowly pour in 1/2 cup of the olive oil and 3 Tablespoons of water. (You can make the dressing ahead of time or while the potatoes are cooking.)
Heat the remaining 2 Tablespoons of olive oil in a 10-inch or 12-inch skillet (I love cast iron) over medium-high heat for about 30 seconds. Add the diced potatoes, sprinkle them with the salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes start to get brown and crisp, about 10 minutes.
Reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until it's soft and starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the parsley and the remaining Tablespoon of thyme. Salt to taste.
Toss the arugula with about half of the vinaigrette; you want it lightly coated. Portion the arugula onto four (or six) plates. Top it with the potato and onion mixture, the meat if using, and then the feta and tomatoes. Drizzle each plate with some of the remaining vinaigrette (you may not need it all) and serve.
Recipe source: FarmgirlFare.com
