Recipe: Mixed Lettuces with Clementines and Hazelnuts

MIXED LETTUCES WITH CLEMENTINES AND HAZELNUTS

About 24 hazelnuts (a scant 1/4 cup)
2 to 3 clementine oranges (about 8 ounces)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar
Splash of Frangelico liqueur or hazelnut oil
Salt
4 to 5 ounces mixed lettuces, washed and dried

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Roast the hazelnuts on a small baking sheet until the skins darken and begin to split, 10 to 15 minutes. While they are still hot, bundle them in a towel beanbag-style then scrunch and massage them to rub off most of their skins. Pick the nuts from the chaff and chop them coarsely.

Slice both ends off each clementine, cutting just deeply enough to expose the juicy flesh. Setting the fruit on end, use a paring knife to carve away the skin and pith in a series of smooth, arcing strokes from top to bottom, rotating the clementine a little with each stroke as you work your way around the sphere. (Most of us misjudge and miss a little pith on the first go-round, but this is easy to trim once you've removed the bulky skin.) Slice the clementines evenly into 1/4 -inch-thick pinwheels. Collect the slices and juice on a plate.

Combine the oil, vinegar, Frangelico or hazelnut oil, a trickle of juice from the clementines and salt to taste. Dip a lettuce leaf in the dressing, taste and correct. Spoon a little of the vinaigrette over the clementine slices. Tilt the plate to distribute it.

Drizzle and toss the lettuces with enough vinaigrette to coat them lightly but evenly. Taste. Toss in the hazelnuts, then distribute most of the leaves among individual plates. Slide and tuck the sliced clementines among the leaves, then scatter with the remaining leaves and the hazelnuts. Drizzle the vinaigrette from the clementine plate over the salads.

Servings: 4
Source: The Zuni Cafe Cookbook: A Compendium of Recipes and Cooking Lessons from San Francisco's Beloved Restaurant by Judy Rodgers and Gerald Asher