Parsley, Arugula and Scallion Salad – Interesting Way to Liven Up a Salad Side Dish

Lots of arugula in the fridge with no idea what to do?  Surprisingly, my first stop wasn't CooksIllustrated.com, but instead Chris Kimball's post-CI venture, Milk Street.  I am not sure what drew me to the recipe I chose – Parsley and Arugula Salad with Lemon and Sesame – but the result was interesting enough to replicate again.

That being said, I didn't exactly follow the recipe.  I omitted the lemon zest entirely, reduced the juice to that which comes from ~2/3 of a medium lemon, and substituted cebolla for the scallions.  Finally, I didn't want a salad that was mostly parsley, so I reduced the parsley to about 1 cup from the 3 called for in the recipe.

This recipe proved itself to be a great guide though in that my improvised result was quite tasty.  A sharpness of flavors from the lemon juice; a nutty crunch from the toasted sesame seeds; and an unexpected freshness from the parsley.  The pepper flavor of the arugula was also muted nicely by the lemon juice and olive oil.  This salad would be a great, healthy summer side for a party so I can see myself improvising it again!