Thanks to CSA Member Theresa Nelson for submitting this delicious recipe! Prosciutto can easily be omitted for a vegetarian option.
Ingredients
4 ripe nectarines
1 cup water
1⁄4 cup white sugar
1 large sprig of thyme
4 teaspoons good honey
3 Tablespoons virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons champagne vinegar (or white balsamic vinegar)
2 Tablespoons plus 1-2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1⁄4 cup pine nuts
Good salt and freshly ground pepper
4 slices prosciutto
large bunch of arugula (you may also use part leaf lettuce)
10 mint leaves cut into thin strips
small bunch of chives 1 shallot, chopped finely
Preparation
Place the thyme sprig, the honey, the vinegar and 1 Tablespoon of the olive oil into the saucepan, warm up until you get a scent but do not boil. Remove from heat, place into a glass bowl or measuring cup and allow it steep for about 30 minutes. Rinse the saucepan. Afterwards, remove the thyme sprig.
Meanwhile, remove the pits from all the nectarines and cut of one half of one of the nectarines and chop it into small pieces. Place those pieces and all the pits in the small saucepan, with 1 cup of water and ¼ cup sugar. Bring to the boil and reduce by at least half to make the nectarine syrup. Meanwhile, cut the rest of the nectarines into wedges, place them in a bowl, and pour the 1-2 teaspoons of lemon juice over them to keep from browning and set aside. After the syrup is reduced, remove pits but keep the chopped nectarine bits, and set aside.
While the syrup is reducing, toast the pine nuts for about 3 minutes, either in a toaster oven or on the stove in a sauté pan – watch them carefully as they burn easily.
Combine the honey-olive oil mixture, the nectarine syrup, the mustard and the rest of the lemon juice. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and add salt and vinegar to taste. Add the mint, chives and the shallot to the dressing.
Wash and dry the arugula, arrange on plates. Cut the prosciutto into strips. Remove the nectarines from the lemon juice, arrange the nectarines on top, then the prosciutto over them. Sprinkle with the pine nuts.
Depending on how you reduce it, there may be extra dressing, which you may keep for a day or so for other fruit salads.
For those who do not eat meat, you can eliminate the prosciutto, and you may want to reduce the shallots or mustard to compensate.
From Theresa Nelson, inspired by a recipe from Endive World
