I have just had an inspiration: the Waldorf salad. As you may know, the Waldorf salad has many iterations. I’ve had them with bleu cheese or gorgonzola and without, with grapes and without, with grilled chicken (surely not in the original) and without, and I really like them all. My first trimester with Oliver can basically be summed up as me feeling so exceedingly nauseous each day and trying to find just one thing that didn’t make me wretch. One day I HAD to have Waldorf salad but then that was it until Mr. O was born.

Anyway, in this blazing hot weather, a Waldorf sounds lovely, and I like this version that I found in the NYTimes one Wednesday. It’s more slaw than salad but that’s nice too.

1/3 c rice vinegar
grated zest of 1 lime
1 apples, cored (Granny Smith, Russet or something else crisp, hard and tart)
3 stalks celery, slant-cut very thin, plus 1/4 c celery leaves
1/3 c toasted walnut oil
s & freshly ground white pepper
4 scallions, minced
1 T tarragon leaves

1. In a very large bowl, mix vinegar and zest. Cut apples into matchsticks, tossing them in bowl as they are cut. Add sliced celery pieces and mix well. Add walnut oil, toss, season with salt and pepper. Fold in scallions. Toss.

2. Cover by placing a sheet of plastic wrap directly on surface and put in fridge. To serve, add celery leaves and tarragon, check seasoning and toss again.

A couple notes: 1) Feel free to add celery root matchsticks too.
2) There is not a thing wrong with adding grapes, bleu cheese or even chicken to this if you want to make it as an entree.