Whether you are looking for back to school or back to work meal inspiration, Aviva Wittenberg has you covered. Her new cookbook, Lunchbox comes out on August 16th and features 75+ fail-safe recipes. Lunchbox provides healthy yet straightforward recipes for soups, sandwiches, salads, bowls, hand pies. Elevate your brown bag and become the most popular person in the office with recipes like Farro Niçoise:
Composed salads are a great way to dress up the odds and ends in your fridge, and make for an easy all-in-one meal. While I [Aviva Wittenberg] adore potatoes (a key ingredient in a classic niçoise), some people do not like them at all, so this is for them. In place of potatoes, I use farro, a chewy form of wheat available at Italian markets, health food stores, and many supermarkets.
Get Ahead: This salad can be made ahead and stored in the fridge for up to 2 days. Or get a jump on it by cooking the farro and storing it in the fridge for up to 1 week. Hard-boiled eggs can also be made in advance and stored in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Makes: 2 Servings
Active Time: 5 Minutes
Total Time: 15 Minutes + Cooking Farro
Tarragon Dressing
¼ cup olive oil
1½ Tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp packed chopped fresh tarragon, fine stems and leaves only
1 Tbsp sliced green onions, light parts only
⅛ tsp finely minced garlic Salt and pepper
Small handful green beans, trimmed
1 can olive-oil-packed tuna, drained
3 cups leafy salad greens 2 cups cooked and cooled
farro (see Note)
½ cup halved cherry tomatoes
2 hard-boiled eggs, halved Olives
Quick Pickled Onions (page 178) (optional)
- Make the dressing: Place the dressing ingredients in a small blender or a tall jar suitable for use with an immersion blender. Blend for about 90 seconds, until combined into a lemon-yellow dressing with tiny flecks of green. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed (see Note).
- Place the beans in a microwave-safe dish, cover, and microwave on high for 90 seconds to steam and soften them a little. Break the tuna up into chunks using a fork.
- Make a bed of the salad greens in your lunch bowl and top with the farro, softened green beans, cherry tomatoes, tuna, hard-boiled eggs, olives, and pickled onions. Pack the dressing in a separate container and toss with the rest of the salad at lunchtime.
Packing Tip: Add an Apricot Vanilla Muffin (page 195) for a sweet treat to wrap up your meal.
Note
Some red wine vinegars can be very acidic; if the dressing catches you at the back of your throat, add ½ to 1 teaspoon granulated sugar and blend again to mollify the acidic flavor. If you can’t get your hands on farro, feel free to substitute with quinoa or, of course, some boiled baby potatoes.
Excerpted from Lunchboxby Aviva Wittenberg. Copyright © 2022 Aviva Wittenberg. Photography ©2022 Aviva Wittenberg. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
