My younger kids do not yet enjoy salad, or should I say lettuce. Sometimes I can get them to eat a chopped taco salad because all of the ingredients are chopped so fine that they do to really have much to complain about with the ground beef, shredded cheese, rice, beans and crushed tortillas just to name a few of the ingredients they love and adore in any meal....
But i digress.....
Niçoise Salad -the kids version
serves 2 kids
110 g tuna without liquid
75-100 g steamed potatoes
3-5 sliced, grilled asparagus
10 g thinly sliced celery stalks
5 g thinly sliced onion
1 hard-boiled egg
50 ml lemon-chive mayonnaise
1 small handful of chopped black olives per child -(optional) my son hates them so I omitted them here.
s&p
Lemon-Chive Mayo
50 g mayo
1/4 lemon zested
1/2 lemon juiced (40 ml)
6 g finely chopped chives
s&p
Depending on your child's age, you may need to use a little more or a little less of some of these ingredients. If your child HATES asparagus, use another green veggie they do like. Try broccoli, peas, green beans or zucchini, but just make sure to cut everything small.
Mix all of the sauce ingredients into a bowl and keep in the fridge until ready to serve.
Slice all of the potatoes into wedges and place in a bowl with s&p and 1-2 T olive oil. Mix it well. Get a steamer ready with boiling water and place the potatoes inside with a lid. Steam for 15 minutes or until they are easily poked with the sharp point of the knife and almost fall off. Set them on a plate to cool. This kind of recipe would rather have your potatoes more overcooked than undercooked. You want them to fall apart from a fork cutting into them.
Sprinkle some olive oil and s&p on your asparagus and grill it for about 4 minutes on a BBQ, or on a panini machine with the lid closed. You can also "grill" them in the oven on the grill setting until they are tender and a little browned. BUT, be careful not to burn them! Set aside to cool.
Thinly slice and/or cut the rest of your ingredients. Place everything into a big salad bowl and mix gently trying to not break the potatoes too much. After plating, place the cut, hard-boiled egg on top. This reason why this salad is soooo good, is the tuna adds depth in flavor, the olives add a salty bite that explodes when eaten, the veggie ingredients are fresh & crispy and the sauce is creamy and zesty. It's very well balanced.