Shaved Fennel Salad with Croutons and Walnuts

Photo by Stephen Kent Johnson,
Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, Prop Styling by Kalen Kaminski

from Bon Appétit

submitted by Anne Halsted

preparation time: 30 minutes

serve 6

2 cups coarsely torn or chopped sourdough bread

½ cup walnuts

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling

Kosher salt

3 tablespoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

1 garlic clove, finely grated

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 fennel bulbs with fronds

¾ cup torn mint leaves

½ lemon

2 ounces Parmesan, shaved

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Drizzle bread with 3 tablespoons oil; season with salt. Toss, squeezing bread with your hands to help it absorb as much oil as possible, until evenly coated. Place bread on one side of a rimmed baking sheet and walnuts on the other side (they cook at different rates). Bake until walnuts are golden brown and croutons are deeply browned and very crisp, 8 to 10 minutes for walnuts, 12 to 15 minutes for croutons. Let cool, then coarsely chop walnuts.

Meanwhile, combine vinegar, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Let sit 10 minutes to let garlic mellow and flavor the vinegar. Whisk 3 tablespoons oil into vinegar mixture, then add croutons and chopped walnuts. Season crouton mixture with some salt and toss to coat and let croutons soften slightly, set aside.

Remove stalks and fronds from fennel bulb. Discard fronds and thinly slice stalks. Place in a large bowl. Cut fennel bulb in half and thinly slice on a mandolin (if you have one, it is much easier; if not practice your knife skills). Add to same bowl along with mint. Zest lemon half over salad, then squeeze in juice. Season with salt and toss to combine. Divide reserved crouton mixture among plates and top with half of the Parmesan. Arrange fennel salad over; top with remaining Parmesan and drizzle with oil.