RECIPE TITLE "Ensalada de Naranjas con Granadas (Valencia Orange and Pomegranate Salad with Olive Oil and Sherry Vinegar)" recipe from Tapas : A Taste of Spain in America © by Jose Andres, Richard Wolffe

4 servings --- easy

  RECIPE INGREDIENTS

1 pomegranate
4 Valencia oranges
1/2 cup Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, peeled
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
Salt to taste
1 head romaine lettuce, washed and torn into pieces
1/4 cup black olives, pitted
1 tablespoon chopped chives

Slice the pomegranate in half. Turn one half face-down above a large bowl, and hit the back of it with a large spoon. The fleshy seeds will fall into the bowl. Repeat with the other half. Remove the white pith and set the seeds aside. Slice off the tops and bottoms of the oranges. Rest them on a chopping board and, using a chef's knife, cut off all the peel and pith by cutting around the oranges. Slice along the sides of each segment, and pull out the segments. Set aside.

In a small skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over a very low flame. Add the garlic and sauté until soft, about 3 minutes (do not let it brown). Place the garlic in a blender, add the remaining 7 tablespoons of olive oil and the sherry vinegar, and mix until thoroughly blended. Add salt to taste. In a serving bowl, mix the lettuce with the reserved orange segments and pomegranate seeds. Add the olives and the dressing, and toss. Sprinkle with the chives, and serve.

José's Tips: You can add walnuts for extra crunch, or even some toasted croutons to make it more of a main dish.

We recommend:

Tapas : A Taste of Spain in America Tapas have become a major presence on the American restaurant scene. People love grazing on the small plates of food that were originally served in bars in Spain to accompany sherry. Andres is a master of tapas cookery, and he presents a few of the dozens of dishes that make up this cuisine. Seafood figures prominently in many of Andres' recipes: squid, octopus, hake, monkfish, salmon, and snapper. He offers substitutions for some of the harder-to-find varieties of fish. Beans appear, always brightly seasoned. Mild peppers may be raw, steamed, or roasted to add a unique dimension to some tapas. Many of Andres' tapas specify particular Spanish cheeses, some of which find ready substitutes. Some more-substantial dishes include rack of lamb, meatballs, and rabbit. Spanish wines paired to each dish demonstrate these wines' growing sophistication and ready availability. Growing appreciation of Spanish cooking and the too-frequent confusion of Spanish and Mexican cooking make this a useful purchase. This is also valuable for anyone looking to generate some novelty in a routine cocktail buffet spread. Mark Knoblauch
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