Hey, I Bet I Love Anchovies More than You Do!

I'll keep this short and savory, since I did such a long post just a day ago and I know your eyes could use the rest.

As you may (or may not) know, I love anchovies. I also love olives. So imagine my delight when I tasted a salad dressed with an olive-anchovy vinaigrette. I know the thought may make some people cringe, but it was very, very good. Just think, a bolder version of Cesar dressing sans the threat of salmonella. I’ve seen similar dressings with capers, and you may choose to substitute capers for anchovies if you’re one of those people who just can’t tolerate anchovies in your food.



Note: use the dry, wrinkly looking olives, not the ones in liquid. Their flavor is more intense and it gives a far better texture to the dressing.

Olive and Anchovy Vinaigrette
makes about ½ cup
1 oz black (pitted) olives, roughly chopped
2 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped
2 tsp Dijon or coarse mustard
1 tbs honey
3 tbs white wine vinegar
up to 1/3 cup olive oil

You can make the vinaigrette in your blender as you would any other, but I like to do this one by hand. If you go this route, grind the chopped olives in a mortar until you get a paste. Add the anchovies and grind until they are well incorporated. Transfer the paste to a large bowl, add the mustard, honey and vinegar. Whisk to get a uniform mixture. At this point, taste the mixture to see if you want more salt (probably not) or honey or vinegar. When you're happy with the flavor, slowly add the olive oil while whisking vigorously. That's all. See how easy that was?

Tasty and easy and quick and simple. That's what this lunch was. The only thing missing from this salad was some sliced sweet, red onions. Didn't have those so I threw some extra olives on top because, really, you can't have too many olives, right??

I like to serve this with a romaine or red leaf lettuce supplemented with a couple slices of red onion. Remember, a lot goes a long way. It’s also great to use as a dip with crusty bread, especially a nice sourdough. . Or even better, try it as a spread on salami sandwiches. Very delicious!