Baby Gem Salad

Gem lettuce is the current rage, and rightfully so. It emulates the romaine parent but has a unique “lettucy” quality. We use gem in many guises, as a scoop for hors d’ouevres with roasted duck legs, as a backdrop for grilled whole fish, or as a standalone, as in this recipe.

I love toasted walnuts. Almonds and other nuts sometimes overshadow them, but walnuts are a great food nut: They make wonderful sauces, they go well in meat dishes, and chocolate chip cookies would pale without