This is simple and easy to put together -- especially when you go with store-bought tapenade and pickled onion. But we can attest to the fact that the author's included recipes for those two components beat any commercial products.
Make Ahead: The onions need to cure for 30 minutes and can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. The tapenade can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Servings: 4 main-course or 6 first-course servings When you scale a recipe, keep in mind that cooking times and temperatures, pan sizes and seasonings may be affected, so adjust accordingly. Also, amounts listed in the directions will not reflect the changes made to ingredient amounts.
When you scale a recipe, keep in mind that cooking times and temperatures, pan sizes and seasonings may be affected, so adjust accordingly. Also, amounts listed in the directions will not reflect the changes made to ingredient amounts.
Tested size: 4 main-course or 6 first-course servings
Ingredients
- For the pickled onions
- 1 medium red onion
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 5 tablespoons water, or more as needed
- 1 tablespoon sugar, or more as needed
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or more as needed
- For the tapenade
- 4 ounces (about 3/4 cup, packed) pitted oil-cured black olives, coarsely chopped (or 5 ounces unpitted)
- 1 anchovy, drained and coarsely chopped
- 1/4 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
- Finely grated zest and juice of 1/4 to 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon herbes de Provence (or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme), or more as needed
- Pinch ground cayenne pepper, or more as needed
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, or more as needed
- For the carpaccio
- Large handful arugula
- About 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Fleur de sel or kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 12 very thin slices roast beef (about 12 ounces), homemade or from the deli
- About 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings or curls
- Cornichons, or other pickles, for serving
- Slices of country bread or baguette, for serving
- Salted butter, for serving
Directions
For the pickled onions: Cut the red onion in half from top to bottom and then cut each half into thin half-moon slices. Peel and rinse the onion slices under cool water and pat them dry.
Stir together the vinegar, water, sugar and salt in a nonreactive bowl or jar, until the sugar and salt dissolve. Add the onion slices to the brine, stirring them around. You want the brine to just cover the onions. Of course, the size/shape of the jar or bowl you put the onions in will make a difference. As needed, you can add more vinegar and water to get the level up. Do this in a 1:2 proportion (1 tablespoon vinegar and 2 tablespoons water).
Wait 5 minutes and then taste – the onion won’t be "done," but you’ll be able to tell if you’d like to add more water to tone down the vinegar, or more sugar or salt. Adjust the brine, as needed, and then allow the onion to pickle for 30 minutes. If you’re not going to use them now, cover and store in the refrigerator. The yield is about 2 cups.
For the tapenade: You can use a mini food processor or an immersion (stick) blender. Alternatively, you can make it by hand if you finely chop the olives, anchovy and garlic. Combine the olives, anchovy, garlic, lemon zest and juice (to taste), herbes de Provence, cayenne and the 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the food processor or a bowl; process, scraping down the bowl frequently.
Keep working until the olives and garlic are finely chopped or pureed -- you can make the tapenade chunky or smooth; the choice is yours. If you’d like a thinner tapenade, add more olive oil little by little. Taste and add more of the dried herbs or cayenne pepper, if you’d like. The yield is a generous 1/2 cup.
For the carpaccio: Toss the arugula with a little of the extra-virgin olive oil – it should be just moistened, not wet – season lightly with the salt and pepper and keep at hand.
For each serving, arrange 2 to 3 slices of roast beef on a plate or individual-size cutting board (the number of slices depends on whether you’re serving this as a starter or main dish). The dish looks most attractive if you don’t press the roast beef down – a few hillocks are nice here. Use a pastry brush to daub the beef with the tapenade, using whatever amount you’d like. (Alternatively, you can drop small dollops of tapenade over the beef). Drizzle lightly with the extra-virgin olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper – go especially easy on the salt because the tapenade is already salty.
Top with some of the arugula, then scatter over some of the pickled onions; finish with a shower of cheese shards.
Put the extra tapenade and onions on the table along with cornichons, bread and butter. Light red wine or cold beer makes a great go-along.
Recipe Source
From cookbook author Dorie Greenspan.
Tested by Helen Horton.
Email questions to the Food Section at food@washpost.com.
