Hanger Steak with Dandelion, Arugula, and Grana Padano by Alison Roman

Though this recipe appears in the Meat section, it is really a glorified steak salad. In fact, it’s the best steak salad I’ve ever had. 

Here’s why. All previous steak salads did one thing for me. They made me constantly choose between a bite of steak or a bite of salad. When I was hungry for a bite of beef, my fork would have to rummage around for it, knocking back leafy greens as it went. If I wanted lettuce and dressing, my fork would dodge steak bits in search of the perfect stack of leaves. It sounds like a lot of effort because it was. And until this dish, I’ve always wished that my steak would just be served separately from my salad from the beginning. 

This steak, and this salad, well, they belong together. In the same bite. Gone were my desires to curate the perfect forkful. Every bite was effortlessly lovely. The flavors and textures worked together so seamlessly that any combination was delightful. The elements to this perfect steak salad are as follows: 

• Red onion soaked in ice water. This mellows the bite, but leaves enough umpf behind to make the red onion a real player. 

• The simplest of dressings. Just olive oil, a dash of fish sauce, salt and pepper, mixed with finely chopped dandelion greens and arugula (or in my case, baby kale). 

• Medium rare steak. The recipe calls for Hanger steak, but I couldn’t find it. I even asked the meat guy at Whole Foods and he said they never carry it. According to the internet, and the meat guy, the closest substitute is Flank steak. So that’s what I used. I seasoned the steak with salt and pepper and seared it in my cast iron over medium-high heat. All it took was 5 minutes on each side and another 5 minutes to rest before slicing against the grain. This steak is solid proof that you really only need salt and pepper to turn out a fabulous piece of meat. That and a meat thermometer so you can easily gauge the cooking time. 

• Dandelion greens and baby kale. Dandelion greens are very bitter (really, so bitter). And that bitterness, in my opinion, is what made this salad so cohesive. The leaves provided just the right balance to the salty steak. They were meant to be eaten in the same bite. Baby kale was a subtle undertone to the steak and dandelion greens. I chose baby kale because I wanted something a bit mellower than peppery arugula for this undertone role. The greens are tossed with a bit of lemon juice and salt before joining the onions and pieces of steak. 

• Shaved grana padano really complements the whole ensemble.

Honestly, please try making this salad for yourself. Or ask me to make it for you. I will gladly eat it again. 

109 recipes cooked, 116 to go.

Spring Peas with Anchovy, Lemon, and All the Radishes by Alison Roman

I was looking for something bright and fresh to pair with Alison’s Clam Pasta. Seeing that it’s already well into summer, and the timeliness of a “spring” recipe grows less with every passing day, I decided to give this recipe a try. As I suspected, pea tendrils were out of the question (I never saw Whole Foods carry them, and I looked all Spring!). But I was able to use some leftover watercress as a substitute. 

The dressing for this salad is simple. At first glance, it made far less than I thought needed, but it seemed to be just enough once mixed with the vegetables. It includes chopped anchovies, scallions, finely chopped lemon, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Olive oil gets drizzled over everything just before serving. 

Once the snap peas are halved lengthwise and the radishes finely sliced, they can get familiar with the dressing, sans olive oil, to begin softening and soaking up the flavor. Just before serving, I tossed the fresh tarragon and watercress with the other vegetables and added a tinch more lemon juice with the olive oil to bring it all together. 

I don’t think I’ll ever crave this salad, but I will think of it in the Spring and Summer months when I’m cooking a heavier entree. All of the dinner guests enjoyed it but didn’t ask for seconds. That seems to be the general response to Alison’s salads (other than her “knife-and-fork” ones, which are real crowd-pleasers.) 

104 recipes cooked, 121 to go.

Smashed Cucumbers with Sizzled Turmeric and Garlic by Alison Roman

This is one of those salad recipes that I wasn’t totally looking forward to, but since my pal Kearci requested it for our Friendship Weekend meal, I acquiesced. And good thing I did too, because this is one I’ll be making again and again. 

The first step requires sizzling some garlic and turmeric in oil over medium heat for only a few minutes, until the oil is infused with the spices. Alison says that either turmeric root or powdered turmeric work fine here. I’ve never cooked with turmeric root, and I’d be interested how that might affect the flavor. Maybe it’s a bit earthier? Total guess, but it’d be fun to try. 

Next step is the fun step – smash the cucumbers. Kearci cut the cucumbers into 1-inch pieces, then placed them in a plastic bag and smashed them with the bottom of a heavy skillet. They softened and released some of their juices. Next time you want an “outlet,” try smashing some cucumbers? 

At this point, you’re ready to mix it up, baby! The cucumbers, chopped scallions, distilled vinegar, and turmeric-garlic oil have a really great party – a party that could go well with anything. 

96 recipes cooked, 129 to go.

Raw and Roasted Kale with Pistachios and Creamy Pecorino by Alison Roman

You’ve had kale chips before, right? Well this is essentially a salad of kale chips with lemon and cheese (and nuts if you want ‘em), and it’s delicious. 

My friend Kearci, who, by the way, gifted me with Alison’s nothing fancy, raves about this recipe, and insisted that we make it as part of our All-Out-Alison meal during Friendship Weekend. (FW is a term I just made up to refer to the one weekend a year that Kearci usually comes to visit me in whatever state I’m living in at that moment. #truefriend) 

Similar to a kale chip recipe, the leaves are removed from the stems and tossed in olive oil, Aleppo pepper, salt, and black pepper before roasting them for 10-15 minutes. The key here is not to let the kale crisp to the point of browning, but rather just the moment before it starts to change color. (A little brown is okay, but we don’t want burned kale.) 

Meanwhile, we made a dressing with shaved pecorino (or parmesan, because that’s what I had on hand), olive oil, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, and salt and pepper. Once the leaves were properly roasted, we tossed them with the dressing. 

Now, I must admit that upon re-reading the recipe for the writing of this post, I realized that we left out one key element. Alison says to reserve half of the raw kale to combine with the roasted kale (hence the name of this recipe, lol). Instead, we roasted all of the greens with much enthusiasm. I have no regrets. However, I can see why the dressing has olive oil now, because that’s meant to soften the raw kale. I bet both versions of this salad are probably lovely. 

95 recipes cooked, 130 to go.

Citrusy Cucumbers with Red Onion and Toasted Sesame by Alison Roman

The first time I ate this salad was actually at my dear pal Kailey’s apartment. In fact, Kailey is one of the reasons I began this project. Since moving to Minneapolis, we’ve become really close -- the ease of our friendship matching that of other decades-old friends of mine. Kailey is a talented cook and owns both of Alison’s cookbooks. When we started hanging out at her apartment, I would steal one to peruse while she made me dinner. Eventually she let me take Dining In home for a few weeks, and that’s what inspired me to ask for it for Christmas! The rest, as they say, is history… 

Jordan and I both really liked this salad, which in my opinion is a win, because he hasn’t loved too many of Alison’s salads thus far. This salad is supposed to serve 4, but we ate all of it for dinner. Except the red onion. There was too much red onion in my opinion… 

The salad is simple. Red onion soaked in ice water to remove its bite. Thinly sliced cucumbers marinated in lemon juice, zest, and sumac. A creamy tahini spread at the base of the bowl. Drizzled with olive oil and toasted sesame seeds. Perfect for pairing with lamb, falafel, steak, chicken, the list goes on. I made this with Melissa Clark’s jalapeno honey steak and jasmine rice. It’s subtlety will complement a variety of bold flavors. I’ll definitely make this again!

74 recipes cooked, 151 to go.