Bloody Mary Tomato Salad Is the Perfect Summer Side Dish
Bloody Marys are a great cocktail — especially on an airplane. And really, when you think about it, if you deconstruct it into all its component pieces, a Bloody Mary actually makes a great salad too. This take on a classic chopped tomato salad is loaded with green olives, celery leaves, and a horseradish-spiked dressing. It contains everything you need for a perfect Bloody Mary, except vodka. And if you want that, you can always have a bit on the side.
This salad is made primarily of fresh chopped tomatoes, so it really relies on the natural flavor of the ingredients. Start with the best tomatoes you can get your hands on. The recipe calls for heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and Campari tomatoes, and the mixture gives a lot more variety of textures and flavors than using all one kind of tomato would.
Toss the chopped tomatoes with sliced green olives and some chopped fresh celery leaves. If you like celery, go ahead and add some chopped celery, too. It will just make the end result even more like a Bloody Mary.
To give the salad some crunch, the author suggests making some lacy crisps out of sharp white cheddar cheese. Just arrange piles of grated cheddar on a parchment-lined baking sheet, as though you were baking cookies. Cook them for about five minutes, or until the cheese piles are fully melted and browned around the edges. Let them cool completely before lifting them off the parchment with a spatula.
The dressing is basically a Bloody Mary on its own. Start with sherry vinegar, some minced garlic, and a diced shallot. Whisk in a bit of prepared horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, honey, hot sauce, Dijon mustard, and celery seeds. Once that is well-combined, pour olive oil into the mixture in a slow stream while whisking, to make sure the dressing emulsifies.
Pour the dressing around the salad and toss it so everything is combined. The salad is ready to eat with the crunchy cheddar crisps. Everything except the crisps will stay good in the fridge for a couple of days, and if you have some crusty Italian bread at hand, you could spoon some of this salad on top for a very interesting take on bruschetta.
Get the recipe: Bloody Mary Tomato Salad from How Sweet Eats
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