French Salad Platter with Salmon Burgers, Asparagus, Butterhead Lettuce, Etc.

Making French salad platters can be habit-forming! Once you key into the concept, the possibilities are endless (and endlessly gratifying). Here’s a salad platter I came up with just the other day, using salmon burgers, asparagus, butterhead lettuce, and a few simple touches.

French Salad Platter with Salmon Burgers, Asparagus, Butterhead Lettuce, and Fresh Dill, with a few other lovely touches, including a lemon-chive aioli. It’s a “see it, do it, nothing to it” kind of dish, but if you need a recipe, scroll on down.

I admit. Ever since I rediscovered Richard Olney’s French Salad Platter template, making salad platters has become an obsession for me. Suddenly, I envision how everything I see at a market can make its way into one of these main dish salads, which I love setting in the middle of my table in “serve-yourself” fashion.

Serve with a little lemon-chive aioli to dab on the salmon burgers.

This platter is anchored by salmon patties and … I cheated and got mine at Aldi. Their Freemont brand of Wild Alaskan Salmon Burgers are pretty darned good. Certainly, they’re not as good as homemade, but for a quick lunch or super-casual dinner, they hit the spot.

I fried these up, roasted some asparagus, sliced some green onions, and toasted some almonds. Just before serving, I tossed some butterhead lettuce with a little vinaigrette (made with white wine vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper—no mustard or garlic this time!). I saved a wee bit of dressing to drizzle over everything before serving.

Oh yes, there’s the aioli, too. Very simple: mayonnaise, lemon zest, a little lemon juice, a few chives. Salt and pepper, of course.

Sprinkle fresh dill and chopped green onions over everything, and that’s it!

Do you need a detailed recipe? Probably not. But just in case, I’ll offer a few measurements and timings.

French Salad Platter with Salmon Burgers, Roasted Asparagus, Butterhead Lettuce, etc.

Proportions are for four servings. Halve or double/triple for more:
Vinaigrette: Whisk together 3 tablespoons olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons white wine vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Lemon-Chive Aioli: 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives, lemon juice and lemon zest to taste (start with 2 teaspoons lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon zest). Salt and pepper.
Roasted Asparagus: Toss 1 pound asparagus (trimmed) with olive oil, salt and pepper, and roast in a 450° oven until tender, 8 to 10 minutes
Salmon Burgers (4): Make your own, buy some at a great local fish market, or pick some up at Aldi — I used Freemont brand, specifically, the chipotle version which brought a subtle heat to the dish. Cook them according to package directions.
Butterhead Lettuce: (1 large head or 2 small heads, torn into bite-size pieces)
Toasted Almonds: (about 1/4 cup)
Thinly Sliced Green Onions (2 to 3)
Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese: (just a bit—2 tablespoons or so)
Fresh Dill: As much as you like, both chopped and cut into small tender springs (no tough stems). The springs can be really pleasant to eat in a forkful of other ingredients.

• Whip up the vinaigrette, make the aioli, roast the asparagus, and cook up the salmon burgers. The asparagus is just fine at room temperature, so don’t stress about the timing of that.

• As soon as the salmon burgers are ready—and seconds before serving—arrange the asparagus and salmon burgers on the platter. Toss the butterhead lettuce with your vinaigrette, reserving a little vinaigrette for later. Arrange lettuce on the platter.

• Sprinkle the lettuce and asparagus with almonds and green onions. Sprinkle the asparagus with cheese. Sprinkle dill over all. Drizzle a little reserved vinaigrette over everything. Whisk to the table and serve with the aioli.

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