Every year after Labor Day, it's as though a switch is flipped in my mind, making me think it's autumn. I immediately start craving cool, crisp air and lazy weekend afternoons in the kitchen braising short ribs and baking apple pie while my husband and son rake leaves outside or watch a football game. But then reality sets in and I realize it's still summer, and it’s still hot and muggy in the DC area. Thoughts of slow-cooked meat quickly give way to dishes that don't require a hot oven or hours in the kitchen. That’s how this salad came to be – I wanted something quintessentially autumn that could also bridge late summer to fall.
<br />When creating this salad, I knew right off that I wanted to use a mix of radicchio and escarole. I love their pleasant bitterness and sturdy leaves that forgive you if you dress them too soon. With beautiful figs on my counter, I decided to dress the salad with a juicy fig vinaigrette (loosely adapted from a Suzanne Goin recipe) that you make by pounding fresh figs into a coarse puree in a mortar and pestle and combining with shallots, balsamic, a touch of honey, and extra virgin olive oil. I then tossed in my remaining figs and added thinly sliced apple and pear, slivers of prosciutto, and honeyed almonds. (Crumbled blue cheese is delicious in addition to or in place of the prosciutto.) The finished salad exceeded my expectations – it’s definitely greater than the sum of its parts. The sweetness of the fig vinaigrette perfectly balances the bitterness of the lettuces, with the salty prosciutto, crunchy almonds, and juicy, crisp apple and pear keeping each bite interesting. It’s a salad I’ll anticipate making each September when the days are hot but fall food beckons -- it'll be my ode to autumn.
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