Warm Shrimp Salad

This salad is inspired by many trips to Parc restaurant. I love to sit at the outdoor tables on Rittenhouse square and watch the dog walkers while I pretend I’m in Paris. But this salad and the wonderful French bread they bake makes a trip worth it even in the winter. When I don’t have time for a meal out or it’s not in the budget, I make this version as an easy weeknight or light summer meal and forego the lemon beurre blanc dressing. But, if you have an elegant luncheon planned, you may want to go for it.

4 cups mix of arugula and baby greens, rinsed and dried
2 oven roasted tomatoes quartered (2 quarters per person)
1 small to medium bulb shaved fennel
2  avocados in ¼ inch slices
4 oz shaved pecorino
16 quick-poached large or jumbo shrimp (more count for smaller shrimp)
salt and pepper to taste

Dressing: Either a simple lemon vinaigrette or lemon beurre blanc
Lemon Vinagrette:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Lemon Beurre Blanc:
¼ cup white wine
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons very rough chopped or halved shallot (I keep it big so it’s easy to pick out rather than having to strain it if you use minced- this will impart less shallot flavor)
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces
¼ teaspoon salt
cayenne

Serves four people for lunch. You may wish to serve with baguette.

Start by roasting the tomatoes. And if you’re heating up the oven and going to all this trouble, you should probably do a whole pan of them and make Oven Roasted Tomato Soup. If not: preheat the oven to 350.  Slice the tomatoes in half. Add 1 clove of peeled garlic, ½ small onion sliced and a little white wine to a small oven safe dish. Layer tomatoes inside up and spread out evenly. Roast in the oven until everything is soft and the tomatoes are look wrinkly. 1-2 hours depending on how patient you are.
Meanwhile, put 2 quarts of water on to boil. Make it salty like the sea. Shave the fennel either by hand or on the thinnest gauge of your mandolin. Slice the avocado into thin strips. Use a vegetable peeler or cheese grater to slice the pecorino very thin. Toss the greens and shaved fennel with a little salt and pepper and the vinaigrette if that’s your dressing of choice. If you’re making the beurre blanc, it’s better drizzled over the salad. Pile the greens and fennel mixture on the plates. Pile the tomatoes, cheese and avocado around the plate. I like to keep them separate for the visual drama. Make the beurre blanc if you’re going that route. Drop the shrimp into the boiling water until they turn pink if they were raw and for 10-20 seconds if they were cooked. Put the shrimp in the last corner of the place and drizzle the dressing over the salad.
Lemon Beurre Blanc directions:
Boil juice, wine and shallot in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat until reduced to about 2 tablespoons (4 to 5 minutes). Reduce heat to medium, then whisk in 1 tablespoon butter, whisking constantly. Add remaining butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking constantly, adding each piece before previous one has completely melted, and lifting pan from heat occasionally to cool mixture. Remove from heat and stir in salt and cayenne.

Thrifty alterations:
To keep it on the cheap, buy large frozen pre-cooked shrimp- let them thaw in the refrigerator and then pop them in boiling salt water for 10-20 seconds.

Save time by using sun-dried tomatoes that were packed in oil. Place tomatoes and some of the oil and water to cover in a bowl in the microwave. You want them to plump up. They definitely aren’t the same and if you’re doing it this way I would use the light dressing because the sundried tomatoes overwhelm the beurre blanc and negate the purpose of all those extra butter calories. It’s still delicious and makes this an easy weeknight meal. I’ve even been known to use the Newman’s Own Lemon Lighten Up dressing with a little salt and pepper for the greens. It does the trick.