Apr 15th, 2009
Haricot Vert Vinaigrette Served À L’Alsacienne
This one’s out of the Sides section of the book, but it makes a great main for a quick weeknight meal too. And I’m so craving a big dose of spring and summer, green beans and tomatoes seemed like a perfect plate of wishful thinking.
There’s really not too much to it: beans, tomato, bacon, egg, anchovies, dressing. Unlike most of the recipes I’ve tried in the book so far, this one is far less complicated than it sounds (the others are exactly as complicated as they sound, sometimes more-so).
At one point I thought I might’ve been in for a long side-trek through the wilds of mise-en-place when the recipe asks for two tomatoes “cut into a concassé” (instructions for which are on a different page) but it turns out that just means “peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2″ dice.”
There are actually a lot of French cooking terms sprinkled through the book, always with explanations and instructions. Ordinarily I’d find writing like that utterly precocious, but in this book it just adds to the earnestness with which Heidi Noble uses her French culinary training and the spirit of generations of French chefs to create beautiful, delicious dishes out of the bounty in her own backyard.
Admittedly, being so early in the season, my imported beans and tomatoes gave only a glimpse of the goodness that’s to come, but I’m definitely looking forward to creating this again in the heat of July, out on the patio, or in a picnic at the beach.
Haricot Vert Vinaigrette Served À L’Alsacienne – page 162
