Hot town, summer in the city
Back of my neck gettin’ dirt’ and gritty
Been down, isn’t it a pity?
Doesn’t seem to be a shadow in the city
All around, people looking half-dead
Walkin’ on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head
The Lovin’ Spoonful, 1966
Summers are getting hotter. Since that distant summer of ‘66, when The Lovin’ Spoonful wrote this song, a lot has changed. Climate change, unrest around the world, wars, famine, poverty, individual riches …
Some things remain forever. Olivier salad. Olivier salad, also known as Russian salad, is a traditional salad dish in Russian cuisine. The original version of the salad was invented in the 1860s by a cook of French and Belgian origin, Lucien Olivier, the chef of the Hermitage, one of Moscow’s most celebrated restaurants. Olivier’s salad quickly became immensely popular with Hermitage regulars, and became the restaurant’s signature dish.
One of the first printed recipes for Olivier salad, appearing in 1894, called for half a hazel grouse, two potatoes, one small cucumber (or a large cornichon), 3–4 lettuce leaves, 3 large crayfish tails, 1/4 cup cubed aspic, 1 teaspoon of capers, 3–5 olives, and 1 1⁄2 tablespoon Provençal dressing (mayonnaise).
As often happens with gourmet recipes which become popular, the ingredients which were rare, expensive, seasonal, or difficult to prepare were gradually replaced with cheaper and more readily available foods. Which ultimately means that you can make a salad from whatever you have on hand. Even with the addition of pieces of ham, roasted chicken, pasta.
Of course, mayonnaise is greasy and heavy. Which is not exactly a recommended food for hot summer days.
Not to mention ladies who care about their weight and figure.
So let’s try to make a light, low-fat, summer variant. Without mayonnaise and oil.
We need potatoes, carrots, peas, egg, pickles, low-fat cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, salt, pepper.
Boil the diced potatoes and carrots in lightly salted water. Be careful not to overcook. Boil the egg hard.
In a suitable container, mix the finely chopped pickles, mustard, and diced hard-boiled egg. Add the peas. Add low-fat cottage cheese and yogurt. Mix lightly. Add the cooled boiled potatoes and carrots. Mix everything together. Add salt and pepper to taste.
And that’s it.
Serve with a slice or two of thinly sliced Bologna mortadella. Add a slice of toasted bread.
And offer a glass of red wine with it.
And last but not least, let your imagination run free.