Summer is here, and with it comes picnics, firepit cooking, and a banquet of fresh foragables. This abundance is what inspired me to choose MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN for my July-August menu. In the book, 10-year-old Sam Gribley runs away from home and lives alone in the Catskill Mountains, foraging and trapping his food. He describes dozens of wild edibles, most notably a “wild salad” of dandelion greens. So that’s what we’re making today!
Sam doesn’t specifically state what’s in the salad (apart from the greens), so I included lots of other items Sam eats in the book like fresh strawberries, apples, walnuts, and bird’s eggs (I used quail eggs). I roasted the walnuts in maple syrup, since Sam makes maple syrup in the book, and I for one LOVE a good candied nut in a salad. Of course, Sam wouldn’t have had any dressing, but I whipped up a quick maple syrup vinaigrette because to me salad just screams to have something holding everything together. I’m glad I did, because I think this is my new favorite dressing! It’s sweet-tart, with just a hint of spice from stone ground mustard. If you want to drizzle something book-accurate on your salad instead, you could whisk some maple syrup with a bit of rendered animal fat.
Full disclosure: I found the dandelion greens a bit bitter, but I would DEFINITELY make this again with a mix of dandelion and other greens.
A
Wild Salad
“I’ll have a salad type lunch,” I said as I moved up the steep sides of the ravine. . . until I worked my way back the meadow where the dandelions were blooming. Funny I hadn’t noticed them earlier. Their greens are good, and so are their roots—a little strong and milky, but you get used to that.
— My Side of the Mountain
INGREDIENTS:
- For the Salad
- 6 quail eggs
- 2 cups dandelion greens, chopped if the leaves are large
- I found the greens a bit bitter, so you may want to mix them with a milder green like arugula.
- 1/2 Pink Lady apple, diced
- 4 strawberries, quartered
- 1/2 cup maple roasted walnuts
- To make, preheat oven to 325°. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and coat with cooking spray. Set aside. In a medium bowl, stir together 1/2 cup walnuts, 1 Tbsp maple syrup, and a pinch of salt until well combined. Spread out the walnuts are the baking sheet so that none are touching. Bake for 8 minutes, stirring halfway through. Transfer to a piece of parchment paper to cool, spreading out the pieces so none are touching.
- For the Dressing
- 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp stone ground mustard or spicy brown mustard
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 8 twists freshly ground black pepper
Makes approx. 4 cups salad and just over 1/4 cup dressing
INSTRUCTIONS:
- FOR THE SALAD. Place the eggs in a medium saucepan. Fill with water until the waterline is about 1 inch above the eggs. Add 1 tsp salt and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 2-3 minutes. Drain and transfer the eggs to a bowl of cold water. Allow to fully cool. Peel and slice in half. Set side.
- In a large bowl, toss together the dandelion greens, apple, strawberries, walnuts, and eggs. Set aside.
- FOR THE DRESSING. Put all the dressing ingredients in a small, sealable container and shake vigorously to combine. Drizzle over salad to taste and toss to combine.
- Serve after a long, hot afternoon of foraging out in the wild.
This was SO good! Everything played a part. I wasn’t sure I would like eggs in this kind of salad, but they added a delightful creaminess.
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