For her birthday a few years ago, I gave my sister a year’s subscription to Bon Appétit.
I must have checked an extra box or something because it kept being auto-renewed annually, which was slightly annoying but I couldn’t bring myself to cancel the subscription because somewhere along the way it stopped being my sister’s magazine.
It started with a peek inside, a few interesting articles and bookmarking recipes to try. Then I read more articles; some fun, some informative and some made me want to travel and eat.
Mostly, the magazine managed to convey how I felt about food; the simplicity and wholesomeness
So it’s our magazine now, and I’ve tried several recipes over the years, but ultimately I’ve bookmarked even more.
There has to be some specialness to a recipe that calls me; it was the parsley vinaigrette that won me over in this white bean and tuna salad.
See, I’d just come into a wealth of parsley. I always seem to end up with more parsley than I need, so this recipe sounded perfect.
The vinaigrette is tasty, tart with a slight bitterness that balances out the salad perfectly.
The recipe calls for good quality tuna; in fact it insists – I didn’t have ‘fancy tuna’, Rio Mare isn’t exactly gourmet, but it’s Italian and in olive oil, and it’d been languishing in my pantry for a while.
Besides I wanted the crunchy crisp chopped vegetables I tossed in to be the star, the BA recipe called for celery, I went a few steps further and added red onions, bell peppers and carrots.
And these veggies play so well together and even better with the fresh and savoury vinaigrette, in beautiful harmony.
I added a teaspoon of red pepper flakes to up the heat quotient.
This is a great summer salad, vibrant and bold and like all things summer, best eaten alfresco preferably with a glass of wine and views of the ocean. A good book or magazine will suffice too…
It’s wonderful for lunch or dinner, and leftovers are good the day after.
It makes me want to have a picnic so bad!
[print_this]
White Bean & Tuna Salad with Parsley Vinaigrette
Adapted from Bon Appétit, April 2012 issue
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups (packed) flat-leaf parsley (leaves and stems)
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tablespoon Champagne vinegar
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 medium head of radicchio, cored, leaves coarsely torn
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cups cannellini cooked beans, cooked (or 2 15-ounce cans, rinsed & drained)
- 2 celery stalks, peeled, sliced thinly on an extreme diagonal
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 1 cup drained olive oil–packed tuna in a jar or good-quality canned tuna, broken into large pieces
- Sprigs of parsley for garnish
DIRECTIONS
- Pulse parsley, oil, lemon juice, vinegar, and garlic in a food processor until well blended
- Season to taste with salt and pepper
- Place radicchio in a large bowl
- Drizzle with 3 Tbsp. Parsley Vinaigrette and toss to coat
- Season radicchio to taste with salt and pepper
- Transfer to a serving platter, spreading out in an even layer
- In the large bowl, combine cannellini beans, celery, onions, pepper and carrots, add about 5 – 6 tablespoons of parsley vinaigrette and toss to coat
- Season with salt and pepper
- Arrange bean mixture on top of radicchio
- Top salad with tuna, mix gently and garnish with parsley
- Drizzle some more vinaigrette over
- Serve and enjoy!
[/print_this]
5 Comments
I popped over to check out your baked peanut butter banana oatmeal because it sounds amazing, but when I saw this tuna salad, I had to tell you..this is my favorite way to eat tuna.–.sometimes white beans, sometimes chickpeas. Â I use a little light mayo, but I definitely have to try it with your parsley vinaigrette! Â Stunning photos too!
30 June, 2012 at 9:57 pmThank you! Try it, the parsley vinaigrette is really good. I love your idea of using chickpeas too, they’re my favourite.
1 July, 2012 at 12:02 pmThis looks wonderful! The parsley vinaigrette is calling my name!
5 July, 2012 at 12:13 pm