100 Things - Apple-Celery Slaw

[shipperx]

{Take the 100 Things challenge!}
I debated for a while what I would do, because 100 Things is...well... a lot. Ultimately I settled on food because I do have an interest. And because I can do recipes or talk about herb gardening or planting veggies. I do all three.

Kicking off the meme, what I made this weekend...



I grow tarragon as part of my herb garden. It grows prolifically. Unfortunately, there aren't all that many things to use it with, so I'm always on the lookout. This recipe took great advantage of it. The licorice-like taste of tarragon really works with the apples and celery. (The dish can also include fennel. As I rarely have any on hand, I usually leave it out, but it also melds well with the rest of the flavors).

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Ingredients:

3 tbs extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 tbs apple cider vinegar (or a sweet white wine vinegar. I always have Alessi's White Balsamic on hand so this is the one that I tend to use.)

1 1/2 tbs chopped fresh tarragon

2 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp sugar

3 celery stalks thinly sliced into narrow lengthswise strips (include any celery leaves that you have)

1 small fennel bulb

2 crisp apples (Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, or Gala) julienned

Kosher salt and fresh ground black (and white!) pepper



Preparation:

Whisk together (or combine in a small bottle for shaking) the first five ingredients. (I also added the white pepper here) I like to make this part ahead of time so that the flavors can meld a bit.

Toss the celery strips, the julienned apple strips, and the bits of fennel, with the vinaigrette

Add salt and pepper to taste


I even put this into the freezer to chill just a tad. It's a nice side dish for a cookout. Lite and cool.