Make Ahead

Nectarine and Watercress Salad with a Fig-Strawberry Vinaigrette

by:
June 20, 2014
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0 Ratings
  • Serves 4-6
Author Notes

This recipe caught my eye on Vegetarian Times, so I happily decided to adapt this recipe and adjust some ingredients to make it my own little twist. The watercress was a perfect contrast to the sweet ripe summer nectarines and vinaigrette, of which I switched out from the original raspberry vinegar to a mix of my own using some homemade fig and strawberry jam & ACV (apple cider vinegar) + tarragon. And instead of pecans I used toasted hazelnuts; a greater "crunch" to my salad in my opinion. It was a HUGE hit at my family get together. —Stacy

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Ingredients
  • For the Salad:
  • 2 bunches watercress, leaves and tender stems
  • 2 nectarines, thinly sliced in moon-shapes
  • 3/4-1 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 2 japanese (or persian) cucumbers, thinly sliced at a diagonal
  • 1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts
  • For the Dressing:
  • 1/4 Fig-Strawberry vinegar (see below)
  • 1 shallot, thinly sliced in rings
  • 1 overly riped nectarine, peeled and diced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil or grapeseed oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
  1. For the Fig-Strawberry Vinegar: 1 teaspoon of fig-strawberry jam, 1-2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar/sherry vinegar, dash of rice wine vinegar.
  2. For the dressing: Pour fig-strawberry vinegar over shallots. Let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes. Place the rest of the ingredients into a food processor to blend. Once vinegar-shallot is done, add the vinegar reserving the shallots. Season with salt and pepper to desired taste.
  3. Toast hazelnuts: In a dry pan toast on low-medium until slightly blistered. Put on a tea towel and roll until skin comes off. Roughly chop. Reserve to top the salad.
  4. For the salad: Toss all salad ingredients together into a large bowl. Drizzle vinaigrette to coat, add reserved shallots (if desired), and toasted hazelnuts before serving.

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