When I announced I was making a fennel Parmesan salad, my father remarked something to the effect, “That sounds like something for ‘ladies who lunch’.” It does, doesn’t it? The idea came from a recipe in the South Beach Diet Cookbook. I never would have thought to put Parmesan alongside fennel, but it’s actually quite good. The cheese perfectly complements the slight licorice hint of the fennel. Thyme and parsley provide the accents along with a simple olive oil and lemon dressing.
Shaved Fennel Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 fennel bulb, shaved paper thin with a mandoline or meat slicer
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/8 teaspoon of chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 1 Tbsp chopped flat-leafed parsley
- 2 Tbsp shaved Parmesan cheese
Method
Gently toss all of the ingredients together.
Yield: Serves 2-3.
This recipe works best if small whole skinless almonds and waterkress are added.
I make almost the same salad, but I add chive blossoms when in season. I break a few up into the salad and then garnish with two or three more.
The light purple colour is fantastic.
I made this last night using grated pecorino romano and navel orange slices. Outstanding! I’ll have to try it with fresh thyme, and the almonds/watercress idea sounds great too.
Try some sweet citrus in there for a real treat, swap olive for walnut oil… wow
This is one of my favorite salads. I like to add shaved radishes, just because I love them. I make this salad often, it’s so great.
Try adding a few dots of pesto on the finished plate for an extra jolt of flavor. Really good!
Excellent recipe as is. We loved it.
I was trying to remember this recipe yesterday at the grocery store, I forgot the key ingredient, parm, back to the store!
Very nice . A regular salad in my house.
Delicious. Tom Colicchio at Wichcraft adds tuna and olives to this to make a delicious mayo-free tuna salad. Really, really good!
Very good!! Enjoying this as I surf for fennel recipes.
My first time eating fennel…I love it! A nice alternative to cole slaw. I served it as a side dish with grilled sausage.
You can also add thinly sliced celery to this recipe. Maybe one rib per fennel bulb.