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Escarole Salad with Garlic Dressing (Salade à l'Ail)

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  • ACTIVE:
  • TOTAL TIME:
  • SERVINGS: 4
  • •BASIC-EASY
  • •FAST
  • •MAKE-AHEAD
  • •VEGETARIAN

  1. 1 head of escarole, with as white a center as you can find

GARLIC DRESSING

  1. 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped (1 teaspoon)
  2. 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  3. 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  4. 1/8 teaspoon salt
  5. 1 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
  6. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  1. Remove and discard any wilted or damaged leaves from the escarole, and cut the remainder into 2-inch pieces (you should have 5 to 6 cups). Fill a sink with cold water and swirl the escarole in it to remove any sand. Lift the escarole from the water and dry it in a salad spinner. (This can be done ahead; the greens will keep in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.)
  2. Up to 30 minutes before serving, whisk the dressing ingredients together in your salad bowl. Add the escarole, and toss well.
Notes This recipe appears in Jacques Pépin's The Short-Cut Cook, published in paperback in 2001 by William Morrow, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers.