We're leaving the greens out today and going for a different kind of salad. Roasted red peppers, marinated artichoke hearts and sun-dried tomatoes come together in this simple dish.
When the veggie drawer is looking bare, bar a couple of red peppers begging for a purpose, I turn to the pantry. I roasted those peppers back to life and added a mish mash of pantry items like artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes and capers. No proper dressing needed, although if you have a favorite dressing at hand I won’t stop you! I woke it all up with a squeeze of lemon, white balsamic vinegar, olive oil and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. Voila!
The ingredients that took this from good to great, were the ever so thinly sliced garlic slivers and the toasted pine nuts. You want make sure you’ve got those two things (oh, and a caper!) on each forkful.
This salad can hold it’s own with chunks of feta, burrata or halloumi on top (if only I’d had any of the above!) and it would also be lovely served bruschetta-style at cocktail hour. Did someone say cocktail? 🍸xoxo Kirsty
Roasted Pepper & Artichoke Salad
Serves 4 as a side, or 2 as a main
2 red or yellow peppers, roasted and peeled, or a 16oz. (450g) jar of roasted peppers, drained
1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
1-14oz. (240g) jar artichoke hearts in oil, drained and quartered
6 sun-dried tomatoes in oil (reserve a couple of tablespoons of oil)
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and drained
1 garlic clove, very thinly sliced
1-2 tablespoons (15-30ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1-2 tablespoons (15-30ml) white balsamic vinegar
1/2 lemon, zest and juice
Flaky sea salt and pepper
To roast the peppers, preheat the oven to 400F (200C). Halve the peppers, remove the stems and seeds. Place cut-side down on a foil-lined baking tray. Roast for 20-30 minutes until the skins blister.
Remove from the oven and place in a bowl, cover with a lid and leave to stand for 20-30 minutes (this will make them easier to peel) while you prepare the other ingredients. When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and slice into strips.
If you have a jar of roasted peppers, simply slice them into strips.
Toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat. Shake the pan from time to time and keep a close eye as these burn easily. It should take 5-7 minutes.
Arrange peppers on a serving platter with quartered artichoke hearts, sliced sun-dried tomatoes, capers, pine nuts and the thinly sliced garlic clove.
When ready to serve, drizzle over olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and sprinkle with lemon zest and juice. Season to taste with flaky salt and freshly ground pepper.
Serve as a side, appetizer with toasts bruschetta style, or top with perlini (tiny mozzarella balls), halloumi or feta on a bed of greens as a main course.
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