Gwyneth is good for you: Spanish chopped salad with tuna and piquillos with Spanish salad dressing
Co-author Julia here. Gwyneth and I met each other in Spain while she was shooting Spain…On the Road Again, a US TV show about Spanish food and culture. Since then, we’ve swooned together over tins of olive oil-packed anchovies and tuna, smoky pimentón and heavy pours of sherry vinegar. This salad, full of incredibly bold flavours, is totally satisfying and packed with protein while still being terrifically good for you
Serves 4
Protein-packed
1 x 400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sweet pimentón (or use the hot version, often labelled picante, if you want a bit of a kick)
coarse sea salt
1 large head of round lettuce, or other lettuce of your choice, carefully washed and dried
1 recipe Spanish salad dressing, see right
3 spring onions, white and light green parts only, finely sliced
2 jarred roasted piquillo peppers, thinly sliced
225g · 8oz olive oil-packed tuna, oil drained off and saved for another use
2 tablespoons roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
✿ Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/425F/gas 7 and line a baking tray with a piece of parchment paper.
✿ Place the chickpeas on the prepared tray, drizzle them with the olive oil and sprinkle them with the pimentón and a large pinch of salt. Use your hands to move the chickpeas around
and get them evenly coated. Roast the chickpeas, stirring now and then, until they’re browned and a little bit dried and
crunchy, 15 to 20 minutes. Set them aside to cool.
✿ Meanwhile, tear the lettuce into bite-sized pieces and place them in a large mixing bowl. Gently stir the lettuce with some
of the dressing so it’s just lightly coated. Place the lettuce on a large platter and evenly sprinkle it with the roasted chickpeas, spring onions and piquillo peppers. Using your hands, break
the tuna into big flakes over the salad. Evenly spoon the rest of the dressing over the salad, sprinkle the whole thing with the parsley and dig in.
Spanish salad dressing
This dressing uses two signature Spanish ingredients in unexpected ways. Membrillo paste, often served alongside Manchego cheese, provides some sweetness, and the olive oil that the anchovies come packed in is embraced as its own ingredient
Makes about 180ml · 5fl oz
2 tablespoons membrillo (quince) paste or good-quality raw honey
4 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil from a jar or can of anchovies (turn to the last page of this pull-out for ideas about what to do with the leftover anchovies)
80ml · 3fl oz extra virgin olive oil
coarse sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
✿ Combine the membrillo, vinegar and anchovy oil in a powerful blender and blitz until totally combined. With the machine running, slowly add the olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Keeps well in a jar in the fridge for up to a week.
