Endive Salad with Oil-Cured Olives

My original goal back in March was to cook a spring menu from the Sunday Suppers at Lucques cookbook every week. Hmmm, hasn't happened yet. I checked my calendar the other day and June 21st is stamped "Summer Solstice". Summer's around the corner and I haven't even cooked any of the spring menus! I think that goal was set a bit high.

I mean it's not a crime if I make a spring menu in the summer but still. The whole point was to follow the seasonal menus. Sigh, so I won't be able to make ALL the dishes and menus but how about I chip away at it little bit at a time? That works.

So my first spring Lucques dish is Endive Salad with Oil-Cured Olives. Isn't it a beauty? Beautiful pale endive leaves with meyer lemon cream, salty oil-cured olives, creamy vibrantly-hued favas, and shallots slivers to liven it up. Trust me, it tastes as good as it looks.

The meyer lemon cream recipe really surprised me. I guess because I've never used dairy in my dressings before. After whisking meyer lemon juice, minced shallots, and olive oil, a little bit of cream is gently stirred in. The cream and the citrus balance each other out, so the dressing neither seems overly acidic and at the same time the cream doesn't feel heavy. It was really delicious and I used it for the rest of the week on different lettuces. It would even be great over grilled fish, chicken or vegetables.

All of Suzanne Goin's salads that I've tried out so far are amazing. I really feel that trying out a few of her recipes has been eye-opening for my salad department which definitely lacks some experience. Each ingredient plays an important role in making the salad whole. I love how salty, bitter, creamy and acidic all complement and work with each other to create a pleasing balance.