my favorite italian-ish chopped salad

inspired by one of my favorite salads in all of NY from Leo in Williamsburg

what you need

for the salad

romaine (chopped)

raddichio (chopped)

baby cucumbers (chopped)

fennel (chopped)

rainbow carrots (chopped)

parsley (chopped)

toasted almonds(chopped)

pepperoncini (chopped)

castelvetrano olives (pitted) (chopped)

dates (pitted) (chopped)

chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

pecorino romano (cubed)

lemon

for the dressing

~tsp of whole grain mustard

~tsp of dijon mustard

~tsp of red wine vinegar

~tsp of pepperoncini or olive brine

~1/2 tsp oregano

~1/2 cup of olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

what you do

now this salad is really a choose your own adventure. remove what you hate, add what you like, chop up everything nice and small, and season generously with salt, pepper, and our punchy red wine vin.

as a loose method, I like to start by combining all our chopped ingredients in a large bowl (besides our romaine and raddichio which will be our base, and the almonds and pecorino which will be our finishing toppings). Season with salt, pepper, and a big of squeeze lemon, then mix together and let marinate while you prep the remaining ingredients.

for the dressing, combine shallots, mustard, vinegar, brine, oregano, salt and pep in a bowl. Stirring constantly, stream in olive oil to emulsify the dressing. Taste and adjust as needed (if too acidic/ mustardy… it’s a sign you need more olive oil. if too bland, add another pinch of salt or splash of vinegar).

this salad has so much going on you honestly don’t even NEED a protein but again… you can go in any direction. I went double fish today with marinated white anchovies on topped and flaked wild salmon around. You can go Italian chopped and add prosciutto/ salami. You can go more mediterranean with grilled chicken or your favorite fish. Hell throw a steak on the side, why not!!!!