The appearance of old varieties on the shelves of gardeners this summer adds color to our plates. Tomatoes come in a palette of pistachio green to deep red, through sunny yellow, bright orange, pale pink; eggplants are no longer just purple or black, they are dressed in white, mottled parma and delicate mauve; As for zucchini, they play both the chromatic and geometric map with bold green and yellow stripes.
Aromatic plants (oh, that wonderful purple basil!) and flowers (marigolds, pansies, dahlias or sunflowers) complete this multicolored picture.
In my work kitchen colors (1), Raphael Aumont, research physicist-chemist and lecturer at the University of Paris-Saclay, emphasizes the benefits of a varied and colorful diet.
Indeed, starting from the 5th century BC. Chinese medicine offered a list of foods divided into five main groups related to the planet, body part and fragrance: red for blood and strength, green for liver and fibers, yellow for stomach and energy, white for lungs and carbohydrates, and black for kidneys and minerals. salts.
→ RECIPE. As a dessert or salad, figs can be cooked in all sauces.
The author also debunks preconceived notions, such as that orange foods such as citrus fruits are naturally associated with vitamins, while a glass of parsley juice provides much more energy!
Colorist Apprentices
A few tricks aspiring colorists can play in the oven: For an amazing, all-natural blue sauce, cook some purple cabbage in thin cream and stir. Use this cream with lemon peel and borage blossoms to spice up your potato salad.
To change the look of rice salad, cook it with raw beets to turn the grains a soft pink. Garnish your rice salad with watermelon cubes and cherry tomatoes.
→ RECIPE. We don’t mess with tabouleh!
In my library there is a monument of exquisite literature, Taste catalog Nicky Segnit (2). On the cover of the book, the flower rosette presents 16 main themes, which include 99 flavors, over 900 combinations and about 200 recipes. For a more historical and scientific approach, see the book by Raphael Aumont.
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► Whole yellow lettuce
For 4 people
2 yellow zucchini
1 yellow sweet pepper
2 yellow tomatoes
4 small ears of corn
2 young stalks of celery
5 cl olive oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Using a mandolin, cut the zucchini into long strips. Cook them for 2 minutes in the steamer basket.
Peel the yellow pepper, cut it into eight slices and fry for ten minutes in a pan with a drop of olive oil.
In a salad bowl, mix the small pieces of corn on the cob. Add quartered tomatoes and chopped celery stalks.
Season with salt, pepper, remaining olive oil and apple cider vinegar.
Add cooled zucchini slices and candied peppers.
Gently toss all ingredients together before serving this salad very cold.
► Whole green salad
For 4 people
2 thin, tender zucchini
1 not too ripe avocado
2 fresh onions
1 thin celery stalk with a few tender leaves
1 cucumber from the garden
100 g green beans
100 g fresh peas
Several sprigs of arugula
Several sprigs of chervil and flat-leaved parsley
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
30 ml olive oil and Reims vinegar vinaigrette
Finely chop the zucchini into slices and strips, do the same with the peeled avocado, fresh onion, celery stalk and cucumber (without peeling if the skin is very thin).
Boil the green beans for 7 minutes in salted boiling water, add the peas and cook for 1 minute. Drain and immediately plunge vegetables into ice water.
Mix all vegetables, salads and coarsely chopped aromatic herbs.
Fry pumpkin seeds without fat in a pan for one to two minutes, stirring constantly. Season with salt, pepper, vinaigrette.
Let it brew for half an hour before eating this green salad.
► Whole red lettuce
For 4 people
1 raw tuna fillet 400 g
350 g cherry tomatoes
300 g stale bread
1 red pepper
8 pink radishes
12 black olives
2 fresh onions
2 pinches ground cumin
2 tbsp tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 C. spoon of sherry vinegar
Fine salt, fleur de sel and ground pepper
Cut the tomatoes in half, put them in a salad bowl with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, vinegar, fine salt and pepper. Leave to marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature. Cut the bell pepper into quarters, peel it and cut the flesh into small cubes. Cut the stale bread into small cubes, and cut the radish in half.
In a pan with the remaining olive oil, fry the tuna fillet for 1-2 minutes on each side, depending on its thickness. Remove it from the pan, season with cumin, pepper and fleur de sel. Cut into slices 2 mm thick.
Mix diced peppers, olives, bread and radishes with tomatoes. Soak bread in tomato marinade for 15 minutes. Adjust the seasoning and divide the salad among four plates. Put in half cooked tuna slices and enjoy.