Prep Time: 15 minutes
Recipe By: David Tanis (adapted) Serves: 6
This crisp, lemony salad of raw fennel and celery makes a refreshing start to a meal, garnished with radishes and basil. It could also be a light meal on its own. Don’t slice the vegetables paper-thin; you want the salad to have some crunch. You may prepare the vegetables up to an hour in advance and keep refrigerated, but don’t dress the salad more than 10 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
For the Dressing
- 3 TBSP fresh lemon juice, plus ½ tsp lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
- 1 or 2 crushed garlic cloves
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper
For the Salad
- 2 medium fennel bulbs, trimmed and finely sliced (about 2 cups)
- 1 or 2 celery hearts, ribs and leaves, finely sliced (about 2 cups)
- 1 small piece of parmesan (about 2 ounces) grated for serving
- ¼ cup roughly chopped parsley
- Basil leaves, for serving
- Radishes, for serving (optional)
1. Make the dressing: Put lemon juice, zest and garlic in a small bowl. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir in olive oil. Set dressing aside for at least 10 minutes.
2. Prepare the salad: Place sliced fennel and celery in a salad bowl. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
3. Discard garlic from the dressing, and whisk dressing. Pour over vegetables, and toss well. Taste and adjust seasoning.
4. To serve, transfer salad to a platter, and use a vegetable peeler to shave Parmesan generously over the salad. Sprinkle with parsley and basil. Garnish with radishes, if desired.