A friend of mine went to Bottega for lunch in San Francisco and raved about the brussels sprouts salad. I've been wanting to make it ever since, so it was about time! What a citrusy-fresh, crunchy, all around yummy salad - why did I wait so long?
I cheated a bit on the prep: the original recipe calls for shaving six dozen brussels sprouts with a mandoline to get about 8-9 cups, but instead I bought two 10-ounce packages of them already shaved at Trader Joe, as well as Truffle Marcona Almonds which are delicious! This recipe generously serves 6.
Recipe
2 lemons, unpeeled, cut in quarters
1/2 naval orange, peeled
1 large shallot, peeled
1-1/2 c. olive oil
1 tsp. sea salt
10 hard boiled eggs, peeled
(2) 10-ounce packages shaved brussels sprouts
3/4 c. Marcona almonds, finely chopped
1/2 c. grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
For the vinaigrette use an electric juicer to extract the juice from the lemons, orange and shallot. Pour the juice in a medium bowl and vigorously whisk in the olive oil in a thin stream. Season with salt and pepper. Taste, adjust seasoning if needed, and whisk again. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes (or up to three days).
Sieve the eggs. I used a ricer and squished three eggs at a time. Put in a bowl. If preparing the salad later, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. All of your ingredients should be nice and cold (except the almonds of course).
When ready to serve, put the shaved brussels sprouts in a large bowl. Add the sieved eggs and chopped almonds (reserving a few tablespoons of the almonds to sprinkle on top) and toss. I find it's best to use your hands for mixing. Pour on about 1 cup of the vinaigrette and toss again. Spoon into individual, preferably chilled bowls, sprinkle on some of the reserved chopped almonds, and top with the grated pecorino. Spoon on a little more of the vinaigrette and serve.
– "Michael Chiarello's Bottega"