I appreciate a good cry. I've indulged in them in taxis, at work, on the toilet, and that's just in the past few weeks. I'm pretty sure there are some sweet health benefits that come from exercising the good ol' lacrimal glads, so why not honor tears at the table. The Seder table no less, where a lot of us will be close to tears anyway due to the fact that we've already been there for 4 hours, and all we really want is a big crusty piece of bread--or maybe cake. Yeah, probably cake.
Anyway. My salad, inspired by the karpas--or herbs dipped in salt water in remembrance of tears our people wept while they were slaves in Egypt--is actually nothing to weep over. That is unless they are tears of joy. This salad is delicious. And pretty. So, cry for our people* this Passover, but not for your belly, 'cause we got yo back.
KarpasSalad
- 1 bunch curly parsley
- 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
- 2 cups arugula
- 1 bunch white radishes
- ½ cup dried cherries (chopped)
- ¼ cup quick preserved lemons (recipe below)
- Olive oil
- Honey
- Greek yogurt
Remove parsley leaves from stems, wash and dry all greens.
Wash and dry radishes, then using a mandolin, slice them suuuuuper thin. Throw
all of that in a bowl. Throw there cherries in there too. Separate lemon chunks
from lemon juices, saving both. Give the lemon chunks a quick rinse under cold
water, and dry them. Now, carefully,
throw them in your bowl. Take some of your saved salty/sour/sugary lemon juices
and mix them with some olive oil. Taste. If it’s good, that’s dressing. If it’s
too sour add some honey, too salty add some yogurt and/or more oil, basically,
adjust to taste.
Who’s crying now?
Quick Preserved Lemons
- Lemon
- Equal parts salt and sugar
Cut the lemon into small pieces (about the size of my pinky-tip, which means, I don’t know, ½ x ¼ inch strips?), and place in a bowl (or jar if you’re planning to save some for later). Add the sugar and salt, with 2 tablespoons each for every lemon used. Let sit for at least an hour, and as long as a day before using or moving to the fridge for storage.
