Zucchini and Cherry Tomatoes With Red Pepper Dressing
Zucchini’s inherent versatility is well known. It shows up in pastas, vegetable stews and can even be pickled. In this salad, thinly sliced zucchini is very briefly blanched, then paired with other summery ingredients and served at room temperature. Roast the red pepper yourself or use a quality brand from a jar.
- Total:
- Serves: 6 persons
Ingredients
- 2pounds zucchini or summer squash, sliced lengthwise 1/8-inch thick
- ½cup roughly chopped roasted red pepper (see note)
- 1garlic clove, minced
- ¼cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1tablespoon lemon juice
- 1teaspoon Maras pepper flakes, Korean pepper flakes or sweet paprika
- Pinch of cayenne
- Salt and pepper
- 1pint cherry tomatoes, halved and lightly salted
- A few fresh oregano leaves and flowers, for garnish, or a few small basil leaves
- Parsley leaves, for garnish
- Olives, for garnish
Instructions
Step 1
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Working in batches, blanch zucchini strips for 1 minute, then remove with a spider or slotted spoon and spread on a kitchen towel-lined baking sheet to cool.Step 2
Make the dressing: Put roasted red pepper, garlic, oil, mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, Maras pepper and cayenne in a blender and purée until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust acidity with a few drops of lemon juice or vinegar.Step 3
Arrange zucchini and cherry tomatoes on a platter. Drizzle judiciously with dressing (reserve excess dressing for up to a week) and garnish with oregano, parsley and olives.