strawberry, fava bean, fennel and radish salad / insalata di fragole, fave, finocchio e ravanello

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Farm-fresh iceberg lettuce inspired this serving option
(placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO)

Our current Cook the Books Club selection is the memoir Taste by actor Stanley Tucci¹. The book included a couple of interesting sections, one pertaining the history of the highly enjoyable movie Big Night (1996),² in which Tucci played the younger brother, Secondo. I didn't know that he had written the screenplay. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it.

The other section I enjoyed was where Felicity (now Tucci's wife) prepared roasted potatoes in a way that first surprised then alarmed the author, but that in the end won the family's approval. Although the last part of the book focuses on the cancer diagnosis Tucci received, the intense treatment he underwent and his recovery, overall the book is pretty light. I wish—and this is on the publisher, not the author—that it had been proofread by an Italian.

Reading the book in the run-up to the 16th anniversary of my little blog, made me think of all the recipes I have created for it. I decided to select a recipe from the early years and update it based on my current eating habits. The recipe I chose comes from a July 2008 post³ and features seasonal ingredients quite representative of Italian cuisine. The salad also happens to include the colors of the Italian flag (called tricolore): white, red and green (bianco, rosso e verde).

before the salad there are pretty ingredients
(placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO)

When I first moved to California, 28 years ago, it was hard to find fava beans and fennel, two foods that had been part of my life since childhood. In time, the situation changed and now I can easily purchase them where I live, when in season.

Fava beans make me think of my father, who loved them eaten fresh from the pods, with just a bit of salt. Fennel reminds me of my godfather, who ate some at the end of every meal (wiped clean with a cloth, not washed, an instruction I follow).

Even after so many years in California, our long strawberry season still thrills me. As a child, the weeks during which strawberries were available always seemed to pass too quickly. Now I know that I have time to enjoy a favorite fruit for several months.

Ready for bright colors: the view from above
(placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO)

For this update, I added a radish to the ingredients, a small peppery note to balance the sweetness of berries. (I had the idea after taking the photo above, so the radish is absent from it). Finally, a beautiful head of iceberg lettuce (lattuga iceberg) inspired me to make small boats for serving. To eat, close the leaf into a wrapper and enjoy the combination.

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for Strawberry, fava bean, fennel and radish salad

Ingredients :

• 7 ounces / 200 grams strawberries, possibly organic
• 1 teaspoon / 5 ml balsamic vinegar
• 1 pound / 450 grams fresh fava beans
• 1 small fennel bulb
• 1 radish
• 2 tablespoons / 30 ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon / 15 ml balsamic vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
• A pinch of freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon stone-ground mustard
• 4-5 leaves of fresh basil, chiffonade
• 1 teaspoon minced fennel frond

Wash, hull and slice the strawberries, then season them with the balsamic vinegar. Toss and set aside to marinate.

Shell the fava beans and blanch them for 30 seconds, then drain them and plunge them into a bowl of ice-cold water to stop the cooking. Slit the skin with your thumbnail then pinch or twist to slip the bright green core out of its coat and into a small bowl. Set aside.

Trim and clean the fennel bulb, leaving an inch or so of the green stalk to hold it when slicing. Quarter, cut off the core, and slice thinly using a mandoline. Set aside.

Grate the radish using the extra-coarse side of a hand grater.  

Bring the ingredients together in a serving bowl.

Pour the olive oil and balsamic vinegar into a small glass jar. Add sat, pepper and mustard. Put the lid on and shake vigorously. Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables and toss.Taste and adjust seasoning, as needed.

Sprinkle basil and fennel frond.

Toss again and serve as a side dish (contorno) or appetizer (antipasto). Alternatively, spoon some salad on iceberg lettuce leaves and serve.

Serves 3 (4 if served on iceberg lettuce).

For future reference (i.e., when it will be my turn to host Cook the Books. Tucci describes a meal he shared with legendary Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni⁴:

After dinner Marcello ordered a digestivo. This consisted of a half a shot of amaro and a half a shot of Fernet-Branca.

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¹ The book's page on the publisher's website
² Big Night
³ From briciole's archive: Strawberry, fava bean and fennel salad
⁴ My favorite image of Mastroianni, by Diane Arbus

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Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post

insalata di fragole, fave, finocchio e ravanello

or launch the insalata di fragole, fave, finocchio e ravanello audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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This is my contribution to the current selection of our Cook the Books hosted by Deb of Kahakai Kitchen. (You can find the guidelines for participating in the event on this page.)

The roundup of the event.

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FTC disclosure: I have received the table linen free of charge from the manufacturer (la FABBRICA del LINO). I have not and will not receive any monetary compensation for presenting it on my blog. The experience shared and the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.

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strawberry, fava bean, fennel, radish, salad

Comments

[Deb inHawaii]

This salad is so pretty and looks so refreshing, Simona. Congratulations on 16 years of blogging and thank you for joining in this round of Cook the Books with such a lovely dish!

[Wendy M. Klik]

It's a gorgeous salad and I love that reading the book inspired you to go back into your past posts.

[Claudia]

A perfect summer meal Simona, with a colorful, and delicious salad selection. I'm hoping some of the new vegetables seedlings just planted will survive this heat. One is an heirloom beet rainbow blend, and another an intriguing mustard, "Chinese Bald Head".

[Simona Carini]

Thank you, Deb :)

Thank you, Wendy :)

Thank you, Claudia. I'll keep my fingers crossed for your seedlings: they both sound intriguing and I'm looking forward to seeing the mature plants. I planted again some leaf lettuce and have been harvesting it. More recently I planted a few zucchini (with low expectations) and bok choy: we'll see what happens :)

[Tina]

Happy 16th anniversary on your blog! Lovely choice for the represenative dish of this marvelous book.

[Delaware Girl Eats]

Shame on me for not checking out your blog post till now -- I had seen the dish in other places and forgot. Am so impressed you have 16 years going! What longevity. As always, this dish is so beautiful and delicious-sounding

[Simona Carini]

Thank you, Tina, on both counts :)

Thank you, Cathy. I like when I can bring together my Italian roots and produce from our local farmers :)

[Frank]

What a lovely combination of tastes, colors and textures! Alas fava beans aren't very easy to source in these parts, I may need to go for edamame which, believe it or not, are easier to find.

[Simona Carini]

Apologies for the late reply, Frank. I was convinced I had answered your comment. I am sorry to read fava beans are hard to find in your area. Maybe if you keep asking farmers, they may give them a try. Not only the beans, but also the young leaves are edible. I love edamame so I totally support the idea of using them instead: so interesting that they are easier to find than fava beans :)

[Elizabeth (blog from OUR kitchen)]

We loved reading Stanley Tucci's book, "Taste"! But how did we miss this salad? And now, of course, we're well past strawberry season. However, our Berlotti beans are just now turning red - I bet they'd work as substitutes for favas. (Favas aren't easy to find here, except dried.) Our farmers' market has really great radishes right now. Hmmm, but what to substitute for the strawberries?

Have you tried Tucci's recipe for Spaghetti alla Nerano (zucchini)? We really enjoyed that section of the book, as well as that lovely pasta. Even though we didn't dress it with Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese - simply because we had a LOT of a really good aged Portuguese São Jorge in the fridge.

This was one of our favourite parts from "Taste":
"I am inclined to confess my feelings about another, even more egregious culinary crime that I have witnessed from time to time. It is the act… (I feel my blood pressure rising as I type. [...] I hope I make it through this without having a mini stroke or worse)… the act… ([...] I'm starting to sweat)… the act… (Breathe, breathe)… of a full-grown adult… cutting their spaghetti!!!!!!!"

[Simona Carini]

Apologies for the late answer, Elizabeth: your comment was trapped by the blog and I didn't get the usual alert. Fresh borlotti beans are so good! They have a stronger flavor than fava beans. Still, I'd try pairing them with a fruit you have available now: blueberries, maybe? I know beans go well with Asian pears.
Spaghetti alla Nerano was a big favorite among the members of the book club. I have never heard of the cheese you mention: I'd love to taste it.
I admit I am totally Italian when it comes to cutting spaghetti. It's something you internalize as a child :)