Split Pea Salad by Alison Roman

For a long time, actually my whole life, I thought split peas were simply green peas split down the middle. Sometimes things are allowed to be that simple, right? Turns out, I was sort of right. Split peas are green peas that have been peeled, dried, and then split down the middle. Split peas are grown and harvested differently than regular green peas, in a manner conducive to their drying and splitting. Personally, seems like a lot of effort to go into for some subpar grains (they don’t begin to compare to lentils or beans). And, other than split pea soup, does anyone use these split little guys in their regular cooking? I have doubts!

Alas, Alison has found a way to incorporate these oft forgone grains in a delicious salad that’s perfect for packing in school lunches and bringing to barbeques. Honestly, I’m here for it. 

I started by preparing the split peas. They needed roughly 30 minutes in boiling water to soften. I expected their bite to have a tiny mealy center, much like a lentil, but I don’t think that can be achieved without over-cooking them and letting them fall apart into a great green mush. If you want them to maintain their shape, expect their bite to resemble a slightly undercooked lentil. I combined the drained split peas with regular peas (I used frozen and thawed ones). Instead of letting my peas thaw over time on the counter, I stuck them in cold water, and they thawed within a matter of minutes. 

Next, I cooked some bacon low and slow. Ten minutes over medium heat was enough time for the bacon to render lots of fat and still get crispy, just the way Jordan likes it. The bacon fat became my cooking fat for the potatoes, which were baby dutch potatoes, quartered, and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Fifteen or so minutes over medium heat was all it took for the potatoes to turn a golden, crispy brown. The trick is to avoid stirring them too much.

Before tossing the potatoes with the peas and bacon, I poured mustard and red wine vinegar in with the potatoes and coated them in the acidic liquids. The whole skillet -- potatoes, cooking fat and all, get tossed with the peas and bacon and create a wonderfully flavorful salad. Topped with fresh chives, this salad is better than any salad you’ll find at a deli counter. It can be served cold or hot, either is delicious. 

I’ve been eating this for lunch all week, and I’ve yet to grow tired of it. 

138 recipes cooked, 87 to go.

Melon with Crispy Ham and Ricotta Salata by Alison Roman

I’ve felt prompted to write about very few dishes immediately after eating them. This salad is one of those exceptions. Just seconds ago, I consumed a plate of juicy cantaloupe, crispy prosciutto, and thinly sliced iberico cheese. Every bite was a delight to eat and orchestrate. With each visit to my plate, I let my fork find the perfect-sized melon cube, followed by a bit of the cheese and a crackly piece of ham, and dragged the artfully designed stack of ingredients through the pool of lemon juice, olive oil, and flaky salt at the bottom of my plate. I love when food commands my attention, sensorily, mentally, even emotionally. And of all dishes to make such a command, it was a salad with fruit and meat. Call me pleasantly surprised. 

I can’t remember the last time I bought a cantaloupe. I’m not sure I ever have before this weekend? I associate cantaloupe with both my college cafeteria and airport food. The cafeteria salad bar always had a daily bucket of fruit. Which is nice in theory, but when the bucket only contained the same kinds of fruit for the 200+ days you eat it a year, you tend to grow tired of said fruit rather quickly. Like all good cafeteria’s, ours tried to be economical. Thus, the fruit bucket repeatedly contained cubed honey dew, cantaloupe, watermelon, and grapes. By sophomore year, I couldn’t eat another bite of melon. Oh, and airport food? You know what I’m talking about -- every food stop that sells to-go food always stocks a plastic fruit cup with, you guessed it, the same cafeteria combo. 

Needless to say, I put this salad off till the end of prime melon season (September). Today, September 19, 2021, my appreciation for cantaloupe was delightfully rekindled. I used half of the melon for this salad, slicing it into thin strips and removing the rind, and cubed the other half for my lunches this week. 

The prosciutto needed roughly 11 minutes in the oven to sufficiently crisp. It made my apartment smell briefly like another feature of my college cafeteria: bacon. Instead of ricotta salata, which I could not find, even at Whole Foods, I used a mild and firm Spanish cheese called iberico. Without ricotta salata to compare it to, I think it worked perfectly. 

Before topping the melon with ham and cheese, I sprinkled the slices with lemon juice and flaky salt. After the ham and cheese joined, I drizzled everything with olive oil and freshly cracked black pepper. I intend to serve this salad many more times, both for a fun snack on a rainy day, and as a sure-to-be crowd-pleaser when guests come over. 

134 recipes cooked, 91 to go.

Summer Squash with Basil, Parmesan, and Toasted Buckwheat by Alison Roman

It may surprise you that this entire plate of squash was eaten by four people in one sitting. It may surprise you that I’ve been craving this dish ever since I made it. It may also surprise you that lemon juice and a dash of fish sauce (yes, fish sauce) are all that’s needed to make seemingly flavorless summer squash taste irresistibly fresh. A sprinkling of parmesan, chives, basil, and toasted pistachios don’t hurt either. 

And that’s exactly what this dish involves – thinly sliced squash (about two large ones) tossed in lemon juice and a teaspoon of fish sauce, arranged with style (or not) on a large serving platter, topped with parmesan, finely chopped chives, basil, and toasted pistachios. I chose to sub the buckwheat groats (an Alison classic) because I already had toasted and chopped pistachios on hand. If you’re considering skipping the fish sauce, don’t. It adds a very subtle complexity that lemon juice alone won’t provide. No one asked, “is there fish sauce in this?” But just, “how did you make the squash taste so good?”

A future summer go-to if I ever had one.  

130 recipes cooked, 95 to go.

Little Gems with Garlicky Lemon and Pistachio by Alison Roman

I’m finding it hard to know what to write about this salad. It was good, but not great. There wasn’t anything special about it. If you’re like me, you already enjoy little gems or romaine (I’ve never seen little gems lettuce in the store), mixed with lemon juice, some kind of chopped nut, and herbs on a regular basis. This salad isn’t any different. Perhaps the only slightly new element from my normal salad routine are the finely chopped lemon bits, which are nice, but not necessary to make a good salad. This kind of light, acidic salad works weIl with a rich entree. I paired it with Alison’s Anchovy-Butter Chicken. While the chicken got some comments, nothing was said about the salad. Not because it’s a bad salad, but because it’s not anything new.  
117 recipe cooked, 108 to go.

Crushed Baby Potatoes with Scallion, Celery, and Lots of Dill

Ah, yes, potato salad. A heralded classic of American cuisine. And yet (and yet) I’ve never liked it. Maybe it’s the cold blocks of potato, or the heavy globs of mayonnaise. Or perhaps, it’s the typical lack of noteworthy flavor. It could be the way it sits in its tub, begging the question: how long have you been sitting there, bud? 

Enter Alison Roman. As usual, she’s decided to shake things up with a new spin on potato salad. Or dare I say, an entirely superior way to make potato salad. In this recipe, you’ll see no mayonnaise, crushed potatoes, tons of fresh herbs, and bold, distinct flavor. You may never want a different potato salad again. 

First step is to boil the potatoes. No, we’re not looking for red skinned potatoes, but rather golden ones that are no larger than a golf ball. (Sure, you can use red-skinned potatoes, but don’t. Those are more mealy and less visually appealing, IMO.) The potatoes only take 15 or so minutes to boil until they’re completely tender. Before smashing them with my palm, I let them cool almost completely, and in the meantime, prepared the rest of the ingredients. 

The bulk of the flavor comes from olive oil, #lotsofdill, lemon zest and juice, finely chopped scallions (white and green parts), and anchovies. These ingredients are combined and tossed with the boiled, crushed potatoes along with finely sliced celery stalks. Finally, the salad is topped with chopped celery leaves, parsley, and dashes of salt and pepper, for good measure. 

I made this salad at home before transporting it to my in-law’s home for dinner. The potatoes spent an extra hour in the dressing, which gave them a chance to become better acquainted with the herbs and lemon juice. This dish was a complete hit between the four of us, and I have a hard time imagining anyone who wouldn’t like it. Which means this can and should be brought instead of that store-bought tub of potato salad you normally bring to potlucks. I can guarantee you won’t have leftovers, and you’ll receive way more complements. Plus, Alison says this salad can be made up to 2 days ahead, so you have no excuses.

110 recipes cooked, 115 to go.

isn’t she lovely