Blood Orange Date And Parmesan Salad With Almond Oil Food

BLOOD ORANGES, DATES, PARMESAN, AND ALMONDS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• Spread the almonds on a baking sheet, and toast 8 to 10 minutes, until they're slightly darkened and smell nutty.
• Cut the dates in half lengthwise and remove the pits.
• Slice the stem and blossom ends from the blood oranges. Stand the blood oranges on one end and, following the contour of the fruit with your knife, remove the peel and white cottony pith. Work from top to bottom, rotating the fruit as you go.
• Slice each orange thinly, into 8 to 10 pinwheels.
• Place the Parmigiano-Reggiano, flat side down, on a cutting board. Using a chef's knife, shave eighteen large thin slices of cheese from the hunk.
• Scatter one-third of the arugula on a large platter. Arrange one-third of the oranges, dates, cheese, and nuts. Scatter another layer of arugula, and continue layering in the same manner, letting the ingredients intertwine together but not pile up on one another. Drizzle the almond oil over the salad, and season lightly with fleur de sel, pepper, and a squeeze of blood orange juice.
• Note
• Use an artisanal unfiltered almond oil, such as Huilerie Leblanc (see sources). The best nut oils are stone-ground and pressed into a pale brown full-flavored oil. If it's clear and looks like vegetable oil, it won't have the intense, toasted nut flavor we're looking for. If you can't find a good pressed nut oil, drizzle with your favorite extra-virgin olive oil instead. If blood oranges are out of season, you can use another delicious orange. The dish won't be as visually stunning, but it will still taste good.

BLOOD ORANGE, DATE AND PARMESAN SALAD WITH ALMOND OIL

Steps:

• Slice stem and flower ends from oranges. Using a sharp paring knife and working from top to bottom, slice off peel and pith. Thinly slice each orange crosswise. You should get 8 to 10 slices from each orange.
• On a platter, scatter 1/3 of arugula leaves. Then layer rest of ingredients, placing 1/3 of dates on top of and around arugula, then slices of orange and a few slices of cheese, and almonds. Continue layering until all ingredients mingle but are not piled up. Sprinkle with oil, and season lightly with pepper. Serve.