Yesterday we knocked out a super good vinaigrette to go with nummy Pancetta Pear and Arugula Salad. The salad is pretty basic and is based on this recipe from Epicurious. But the vinaigrette was our own creation…The salad was a blend of 1 part Arugula to 2 parts Red Leaf Lettuce (since we still had tons of lettuce on hand from our CSA), 1 Bartlett pear cored, quartered and thinly sliced, about 4 oz (pre-cooked weight) of crispy Pancetta bits, and Gorgonzola (which we love).
For the dressing, we had to fake it ‘cuz we didn’t have all the right ingredients for the one from the magazine. We still wanted something fairly light, though, as this salad is pretty fresh tasting and we didn’t want to weigh it down too much. Here’s what we used (roughly, we’re not very good about measuring anything):
- 4 Tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Tbsp Tarragon Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Seasoned Rice Vinegar
- 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
- 1 tsp Fresh Thyme
- 1/2 tsp Lemon Zest
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Cutting back on the oil from the usual 3 to 1 oil-to-acid/vinegar ratio lightens up the dressing quite a bit. The tarragon vinegar added a nice, general herby note and helped keep it all from seeming too ‘thymey’.The Dijon acts as a pretty good binder (emulsifier if you want to get all fancy) and works with the savory side of the seasoned rice vinegar and salt & pepper.
We’ve been pretty in to the tarragon vinegar, lately. We can get bottles from our local Fred Meyer store for just a couple of bucks and it’s really awesome in vinaigrettes. I’ve also heard it’s pretty good on fish but we’ll have to let you know about that…
This made my mouth water…I’m making it tonight. Thanks!
That’s 2 cevelr by half and 2×2 clever 4 me. Thanks!