Feel like you want to be inspired but not sure how? Here’s the perfect platform for you to play with. This smoked trout salad is ideal for brunch or a party. We adapted the original recipe, from the Blue Ribbon Cookbook, adding some sweetness and crunchiness: dried cranberries and candied nuts. You can simply go wild here by adding and subtracting ingredients. The basic idea, smoked trout with greens of distinction [endive and watercress!], gets you started. You can add different herbs, accent it with onion or just polish with some scallions.
If you want to offer this as a main dish, increasing the amount of smoked trout is easy. You might double or triple the amount given here, depending on your guest’s craving for protein. The smoked trout can, of source, be substituted by other smoked fish — certainly salmon. But I invite you try this first with the trout. Smoke trout has a more delicate flavor that plays very nicely with intensity of the greens here. This combination of ingredients gives you a flavor blend that is not dominated by any single note.
Smoke Trout Salad
Serves: 6 to 8
Ingredients:
- ½ cup vinaigrette of your choice
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- 1 medium beet, trimmed
- 4 ½ cups watercress
- 3 cups mixed salad greens
- 3 cups chopped endive (from about 6 endives)
- 4 ounces smoked trout, flaked
- 1 medium Granny Smith apple, cored and chopped
- ½ cup dried cranberries or pomegranate seeds
- ½ cup moderately cut candied nuts: pecans or walnuts
Preparation:
Whisk together the vinaigrette, sour cream, and dill with 2 tablespoons water. Cover the dressing and refrigerate until ready to use (up to 3 days).
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Wrap the beet tightly in aluminum foil and place the foil packet on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the beet is fork tender, about 1 hour. Cool, then slip off the skin, and cut the beet into cubes.
In a large bowl, combine the beet with the watercress, salad greens, endive, trout, apple, cranberries and nuts and toss well. Add just enough of the dressing to lightly coat the greens. Toss again before serving.
Source: Inspired by the Blue Ribbon Cookbook by Bruce and Eric Bromberg