The inspiration came from my stomach: after making a BLT for dinner (an awesome BLT, inspired by Nancy Silverton’s sandwich book, with avocado instead of tomato and tarragon in the mayonnaise) i was still hungry. I opened my fridge and saw fresh cut pineapple I’d bought earlier in the day. So I removed that, I removed the tarragon, I dug in and found a big leftover chunk of ricotta salata, half a Vidalia onion, and–most notably–the jar of June Taylor’s Meyer Lemon & Rosemary Marmalade which I purchased at the San Francisco Ferry Building:
I sliced the pineapple uniformly, I diced the onion into a small dice, and shredded the tarragon. Then I tossed them all on a plate with some olive oil, salt and pepper, crumbled over the ricotta salata and–in a move inspired by David Chang’s use of lychee gele in the glorious apple salad I had at Ssam bar–spooned the Meyer Lemon marmalade on top.
The result was surprising and exciting. The tartness of the lemon balanced the sweetness of the pineapple, offset by the creaminess of the cheese and the herbiness of the tarragon. I felt like a 3-star chef primed for my very own James Beard award. I applauded myself voraciously, devoured the salad, cleaned up the mess, watched “The View” on Tivo and went to bed. It was a magical night.
Yay for you!
For me, that’s what cooking is all about, taking what’s in the fridge, what needs to be used, what’s fresh, that odd assortment of stuff that just happens to be in the house, and making something special with it. Even if it’s just for yourself.
I was never one of those cooks who take a list of ingredients to the grocery store so they can make something according to a recipe.
Wait – you had a BLT, minus the “T”, substituting an “A” and adding another “T”?
Doesn’t that make your dinner a BLAT sandwich? Hmm. The ingredients sound lovely, but the name needs some work!
From You Tube Feed Me Bubbe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-s1bkr8iPM
If you haven’t had the pleasure of watching her videos, you should! Shalom!
truly a stroke of genius.
wish I had Meyer Lemon & Rosemary Marmalade in MY fridge.
OH! AND your salad looks fabulous, too! I’d be wonderful alongside grilled tuna…grill the pineapple…does tarragon go with tuna? I’m not a big tarragon fan, but that’s just me, although…I’ve not tried it with ….Who lives in a pineapple under the sea….?
YUM! That sounds amazing. Ricotta Salata is one of my absolute favorite cheeses, on pasta, on salad, on a fork! Delish!
~Monica