Fall & Winter Hearty Salad

As winter is just around the corner and fall has already started, this salad will be a perfect meal for the season; it is very hearty and fulfilling enough to be a main dish.

A big plus: It is easy to prepare.

The following quantities are for 2 people, so feel free to adjust if you are cooking for more or fewer people, or according to your taste*.

For the salad:

• Some lettuce or salad
• 2 eggs
• 3 potatoes
• Some vegetable oil to roast the potatoes
• Some bacon, or lardons, or ham
• Some Comté cheese (or sharp cheddar)
• Some croutons or old bread that you will toast

For the vinaigrette: (you can adjust the measurements according to your taste)

• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• 1 to 1.5 tablespoon of vinegar
• 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil
• Some shallots (optional ... to your taste)
• Some chives (optional ... to your taste)
• Salt
• Pepper

Preparation time: 15-20 minutes
Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Start by rinsing and drying the salad if it's a fresh one from the shelf, or just open your salad packet and keep on the side.

Boil the egg in boiling water for about 10 minutes. Once they are cooked, rinse them with cold water, and let them sit in the fridge to cool down.

Peel your potatoes and cut them into cubes. In a pan, add some vegetable oil and heat it up. Place the cubed potatoes, roast them, and keep them on the side.

If you are using bacon, remove most of the fat from the bacon and cut it into pieces. If you are using lardons or ham, just toss the pieces into a hot pan and roast them.

Set them aside after they are roasted.

Cut the borders off the Comté cheese ...

... then cut it into slices and into cubes, and put it aside.

Once the eggs are cooled, peel them, cut them, and place them on the side.

Cut some bread into pieces and toast them, or just open the croutons packet you bought.

Prepare your dressing by adding, in a bowl, a teaspoon of French Mustard and the vinegar. Mix together and add the previously cut shallots, chives, some salt, and pepper. Add the olive oil and mix.

Just before serving, reheat your potatoes and your lardons for a few minutes, and cut your toasted pieces of bread in cubes.

It is now time to dress your plate: Plate the salad, the Comté cheese, the potatoes, the lardons, the croutons, and the eggs.

Add your dressing ... and enjoy!

*Note: If you happen to have some leftovers sun-dried tomatoes, you can add them to this salad, but be careful to not add to many ingredients as this is a fulfilling enough salad the way it is.

As with all the other recipes we put on this site, this is meant to be easy to follow. We are hobby chefs who love to cook, and we are always up for learning new techniques. If you know of anything in this recipe which can be done a different way, whether for increased ease of preparation or better taste, please add a comment below!

Whipped up by Charline Leblond

Quiche

Quiche is a simple meal to prepare and, accompanied with a salad, is a light enough dinner.

To make one 28 cm diameter quiche or six individual quiches (also shown below), you will need:

• 200 grams of lardons or bacon or ham
• 100 ml of milk
• 200 ml of crème fraîche semi-epaisse (heavy cream)
• 4 eggs
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 puff pastry ready roll to make it easier and quicker to prepare (but if you have time or you feel more "adventurous" you can prepare the puff pastry yourself)
• 40 to 50 grams of Swiss cheese or cheddar cheese

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 30-35 minutes

Start by pre-heating your oven at 220 C (425 F).

While your oven is heating up, cook your pieces of lardons in a pan for few minutes.

If you are using bacon, cut most of the fat off your bacon, cut it into small pieces, and cook the bacon pieces for few minutes.
if you are using ham for this recipe, use some lean ham, cut it into small pieces, and cook the ham pieces for few minutes. 

Once your lardon pieces are cooked, place them on a paper towel sheet to absorb the grease.

In a bowl, add the milk, crème fraîche, eggs, salt and pepper, and mix your them together.

Place the crust in the mold, and with a fork, poke few holes in the crust.

Place your pieces of lardons on the crust and pour the preparation on top of it.

Add some cheese on top.

Put your quiches in the oven for about 30-35 minutes until the top is golden brown... and here it is!

Eat the quiche warm ... some people like it cold too ... you could eat the leftovers for the next morning's breakfast.

Note: You will also need a pie pan or 6 individual ones ... my preference is the individual ones because I am mostly cooking for two, so it is much easier to keep the leftovers for the next day (as it won't dry as much as a whole pie).

As with all the other recipes we put on this site, this is meant to be easy to follow. We are hobby chefs who love to cook, and we are always up for learning new techniques. If you know of anything in this recipe which can be done a different way, whether for increased ease of preparation or better taste, please add a comment below!

Whipped up by Charline Leblond