Recipe: Nancy’s chopped salad
Total time: 30 minutes
Servings: 6
Oregano dressing
4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice, or juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup good red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1. Roughly chop the garlic and then add the oregano, salt and pepper. Chop the mixture together and use the side of a knife or a mortar and pestle to make a grainy herb paste.
2. Transfer the paste to a large salad bowl, and add the lemon juice and vinegar. Mix with a fork, allowing the salt to dissolve, then add the oil and whisk with a fork until well combined. The dressing should be thick with garlic and oregano.
Salad and assembly
1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
1 red onion, peeled and sliced into fine rings
1/2 pound provolone, sliced 1/4 -inch thick then cut into 1/2 -inch ribbons
1/2 pound salami, peeled, sliced 1/4 -inch thick then cut into 1/2 -inch ribbons
4 medium or 8 small pickled pepperoncini, sliced into rings
3/4 pound cherry tomatoes
Sea salt
1 head iceberg lettuce, cored, and cut in ribbons 1/4 - to 1/2 -inch wide
1 head radicchio, cored and cut in ribbons 1/4 - to 1/2 -inch wide
2 tablespoons dried oregano for garnish (optional, preferably Sicilian or Turkish)
1. Gently fold the chickpeas, red onion, provolone, salami, pepperoncini (including seeds and juice) into the dressing, one at a time. Halve the tomatoes lengthwise and season with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Set aside until ready to serve.
2. When ready to serve, gently add the tomatoes, lettuce and radicchio to the salad bowl, along with a couple of generous pinches of oregano, and toss to combine with the dressing. Serve immediately.
Each serving: 490 calories; 23 grams protein; 25 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams fiber; 34 grams fat; 13 grams saturated fat; 56 mg. cholesterol; 2,285 mg. sodium.