mix, mix… stir, stir

A perfect nibble for summer entertaining. The creamy avocado plays so perfectly against the bright tart flavor of grapefruit and rhubarb. Grapes chime in with a sweet note and a toasty crunch from almonds adds a little contrast. The bite-sized salad is brought together with the peppery bite of watercress and the cool crunch of the cucumber round. It looks and tastes like summer!

photo by David Peterman

The cucumber round as a delivery vehicle was a revelation inspired by the pressure of a ticking clock. The first time I made a salad hors d’oeuvre similar to this one, I rolled the salad in long thin strips of cucumber “noodles” and speared each one with a toothpick to keep them closed.  What a slow process that was. As I was madly preparing this salad to take to a friend’s party, I had to accept the fact that I would miss the entire event if I tried to roll the salad in strips of cucumber. I really hate to settle for a less-than option, and was quite pleased when “cucumber rounds” popped into my head. Initially I thought it was a reasonable substitute to the cucumber roll, but I am now of the opinion it is a superior presentation and I will forever save myself the effort of rolling spoon-fulls of salad in cucumber strips. 

The cucumber round allows the beautiful salad ingredients to dazzle your eyes before it even hits your palate. It can also be quickly assembled on-site when taking the canapes to a party, which is always better than trying to transport an assembled tray of hors d’oeuvres.

Deborah Madison, in her book Local Flavors, Cooking and Eating From America’s Farmer’s Markets, has a lovely avocado grapefruit salad with pomegranates and pistachios that is part of the inspiration behind my salad canapes. Additionally, earlier this year I had the good fortune to eat at Charlie Trotter’s new restaurant in Las Vegas, Restaurant Charlie, and enjoyed a wonderful asparagus, rhubarb, and nasturtium salad. The rhubarb was cut into long thin ribbons and pickled. It was delicious and made me realize I had never had rhubarb in a savory application, so I decided I needed to start playing around with rhubarb in applications beyond desserts. My Avocado Grapefruit Salad Canapes are the result of these two experiences. I hope you make them for a party this summer.

Avocado Grapefruit Salad Canapes
2 thin ribs of rhubarb
1 small red onion
2 grapefruit
1 avocado
1 cup seedless red grapes
1 bunch watercress
2 medium to large cucumbers
1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted
3 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
3 Tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. water
1/4 cup orange juice
2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Slice the red onion and rhubarb very thinly and place in a small bowl with the white wine vinegar, seasoned rice vinegar, and water. Mix the ingredients together, then place in the refrigerator for about an hour to marinate.

Cut the peel and pith off of the grapefruits. Carefully cut between the membrane sections to remove the wedges of grapefruit pulp leaving behind the membrane. Cut the grapefruit sections into small pieces and place in a medium bowl. Peel and cut the avocado into small pieces (about 1/4″-1/3″ cubes) and add them to the bowl with the grapefruit. Slice the grapes into quarters and add them to the bowl along with the toasted almonds.

To make the dressing, place the orange juice in a small bowl and whisk in the olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Wash and dry the watercress and remove any thick stems. Cut the bulk of the stems off, but don’t worry about using some of the stems. Rough chop the leaves and remaining stems by cutting through the watercress just two or three times. The watercress should be in larger pieces than the other ingredients that have been chopped. Add it to the bowl of chopped ingredients.

Slice the cucumbers into rounds thick enough to be stable when picked up, about 1/8″ thick. Set aside for assembly.

Drain the onion and rhubarb then add it to the bowl of chopped ingredients. Add the dressing and toss everything together. Taste salad and add additional salt and pepper if desired.

Place a spoon-full of salad on each cucumber round just before serving.