I tried to remember what my mom fixed for supper in the days when we (and nobody else) had air conditioning. My dad hooked up a hose to the furnace and we had a water “cooler” but it didn’t help the humidity. There were nights in July and August when I couldn’t sleep—even the sheet over me was too much—and I was just a child. So trying to beat the heat is nothing new.
Main dish salads weren’t really “in” as I recall and we certainly didn’t have the plethora of handy appliances we do now but gardening was at an all-time high and we had fresh vegetables galore. I think a really typical supper on a hot night would have been some kind of pan-fried meat with boiled new potatoes (from the garden) fixed with butter and chives, beautiful home-grown tomatoes sliced thick, some wilted lettuce (that’s a salad, not exhausted lettuce), corn on the cob and berries with cream. Not bad, as I recall. But still there was a fair amount of cooking. I think a main dish salad using many of those ingredients would be more “today”, but, as I mentioned, I have run out of new ideas for those salads.
Then I came across two long unused cookbooks: “Salad Suppers,” and “Cold Soups, Warm Salads” I perused them hungrily, looking for some fresh inspiration and I wasn’t disappointed. There are so many good and easy and nutritious ideas for salad that I couldn’t wait to try them all! However, that isn’t really practical so I decided to try just one or two to start.
Sautéed Tuna Nicoise was my first choice. I’ve always loved this salad and it really uses garden produce to the fullest. You can make this with fresh tuna that you can grill outdoors or open a can of white Bonito tuna packed in oil—really delicious.
Makes 4 servings
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp dry mustard
1 garlic clove, halved
½ to 1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
5 to 6 medium red-skinned potatoes, cooked
1/3 to ½ pound green beans, blanched
Red or green leaf lettuce
2 ripe tomatoes
½ red onion, sliced thin
¼ to ½ cup Nicoise or Mediterranean black olives
1 ½ pounds tuna steak, 1-inch thick or 3 6-oz cans white Bonito tuna, packed in oil
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp drained capers (optional)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Garlic Croutons (recipe follows)
Blend the vinegar, lemon juice, dry mustard, garlic clove, salt and pepper and let sit 20 minutes. Remove the garlic and whisk in the olive oil. Set aside. While the potatoes are still warm, slice, put in a bowl with a portion of the dressing and let marinate. In separate bowl, put the blanched green beans with some additional dressing. Line a serving platter with the lettuce, leaving a place in the center for the tuna. Arrange the potato slices overlapping in a ring around the center. Place the green beans in spoke fashion or in groups around the potatoes. Slice the tomatoes in half lengthwise and then in thirds. Scatter the onion rings and sprinkle with olives. Cut the tuna into ½-inch chunks (or break up canned tuna with a fork). In a skillet, heat olive oil and saute fresh tuna 3 to 4 minutes, tossing gently. Place in the center of the prepared platter. If desired, sprinkle with capers. Drizzle the dressing over all and top the tuna with chopped parsley. Serve with Garlic croutons.
Garlic Croutons
½ loaf French bread (baguette)
Olive oil
Garlic clove, halved
Preheat oven to 325. Slice the bread about ¼-inch thick and place on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven about 10 minutes or until dry. Brush both sides with oil, turn and rub the tops with the cut side of the garlic. Return to the oven until light golden. These can be made ahead of time and stored up to a week in a tightly sealed container or plastic bag.
Do all of the cooking in the cool of the morning. Bring to room temperature before serving.
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