Chicken Nicoise Salad with Blood Orange Vinaigrette

I’m passionate about this Nicoise salad, and what a chance I had lately to show it off.  Since I’ve been ready lately to say goodbye to stews and hello to salads (enough with winter already!) it was a great time to check out this month’s  Royal Foodie Joust,  hosted by the Leftover Queen.  Ingredients for March 1st  are a forward-look to spring:  Orange, Shallots and edible flowers.

The South of France jumped to my mind, and the craving for a hearty fresh salad meant I would make salad a la nicoise, which is traditional in some ways – and definitely benefits from the inspiration of the three chosen ingredients.  Using chicken instead of  traditional tuna meant that this was a totally from-the-pantry meal……..and anytime I can root around what’s on hand and come up with something delicious is a happy time.  My choice of orange ( blood oranges) and edible flower of choice  (herbes de provence) were easy to incorporate throughout the dish, as were the shallots. All  gave tremendous layers of taste, and this is the very best salad a la nicoise I know of!

Herbes de Provence  relies  heavily on the floral notes of lavender.  It also has a wide variety of other herbs in it, and while the mix varies from brand to brand, it typically includes thyme, margoram, fennel seed, savory and sage.  It’s flavor is subtle, and for this salad it found it’s way into the marinade for the chicken, the blood orange vinaigrette, the sauteed green beans  and  the roasted potatoes!

The blood oranges, so dramatic with their deep color and seductive, sweet, berry taste were perfect for adding  full flavor throughout the salad. I started with the blood orange zest, which I used to marinate some olives.

I do realize that ripe (black) little nicoise olives are the traditional ones to use for the salad, but I had some  pitted green ones that cried out for a little boost. Simple enough!

Recipe for Orange Marinated Green Olives:

1/4 cup olive oil

 2 cloves of crushed garlic

 zest of 1/2  blood orange

1 teaspoon of minced shallot

freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

 

Heat all ingredients together on medium heat to a simmer.  Lower heat and allow to simmer 5 to ten minutes for the flavors to be released.

Take off the heat, add 2 cups of drained olives.  I find by using already brined olives, little to no additional vinegar is necessary.

 Stir and allow to sit for several hours or overnight.

 

Next up for the blood oranges, this time the juice, was a  vinaigrette.

Recipe for Blood Orange Vinaigrette:

• 1/2 cup blood orange juice
• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons white or rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 2 teapoons herbs de provence
• 3 anchovies, minced (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste

 

Mix all the ingredients and shake in a covered container or whisk briskly in a bowl.  

Salt and pepper to taste – if you are using the anchovies, they may give the dressing enough salt as is.  If you like a more emulsified dressing, add a teaspoon or two of dijon mustard.

 

Quick saute the green beans in olive oil and a pinch of Herbs de Provence. Add a little fresh dressing on top to make the green beans really incredible!

 

The dressing also enhances the herb roasted baby red potatoes (toss in olive oil, herbs de provence and cook in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes). 

 

 The chicken briefly marinates in the dressing (15 minutes at room temperature), sprinkle with more crushed herbes de provence and saute in a skillet until done.

If you’ve got some herbs de provence lurking around your spice drawer – try it for a quick and simple chicken dish. It’s an easy and delicious way to add interest.

So with all the extra-specially prepared components, time to put the entire salad together.  All told, the salad items are:

• Chicken breast, marinated, sauteed and sliced
• Marinated olives
• Baby tomatoes
• Sauteed green beans
• Herb roasted baby potatoes
• Shallots, sliced
• Anchovies
• Hard boiled egg, sliced
• lettuce leaves
• Vinaigrette

  This is a full-on main course dish, and we had fun eating it from one platter, though individual plates could of course be made.  Fresh, delicious and inspiring – come on spring!