Richard III

Last Sunday, we went to see Richard III at American Players' Theater in Spring Green. It was very warm, but once I reached a sweaty threshold, I just dealt with it. Besides, we had a wonderful performance to distract us. I'd never seen that play before, and I was very impressed. It's such an intense story, and I want to learn more about the historical figure of Richard III (versus the highly fictionalized account concocted by Shakespeare). Next on my watch list is the 1995 adaptation starring Ian McKellen, which takes place in 1930s Britain.

And of course the food: We had a lovely picnic with soppresata; prosciutto; cold lentil salad (recipe from A Sweet Pea Chef below); broccolini, mushroom, and mozzarella salad (recipe also below and was recommended by Mr. Beau); multigrain baguette;
crackers; assorted cheeses; cold beer; and seccola (a semi-sparkling white wine; was compared to prosecco, but I much prefer prosecco) with cranberry juice over ice for the womenfolk.

Cold lentil salad

Cold Lentil Salad

1 cup lentils, uncooked
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 green onions, chopped
2 tbsp. Italian parsley, chopped
1/4 small red onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
kosher salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Add enough water to fully cover lentils in a deep pot and cook, covered, over medium-high heat for 30-45 minutes, or until tender (but not falling apart). Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and vinegar. Set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine cooked lentils, green onions, parsley, red onion and carrot. Drizzle olive oil mixture over salad and toss well. Season to taste with kosher salt and ground black pepper, if desired.
Refrigerate, covered, for at least 30-45 minutes to chill, preferably 2-3 hours to allow flavors to meld.

Broccolini, Mushroom, + Mozzarella Salad

broccolini, blanched in salted water

cremini mushrooms, about 2 inches in diameter, sliced thinly

1 shallot, sliced very thin

cerignola olives, pitted and choped

red wine vinegar

salt and pepper

extra virgin olive oil

Mix to taste. Serve with buffalo mozzarella on the side.

Sorry I don't have any measurements. You'll just have to taste and trust your palate. Also, I substituted kalamata for cerignola olives, apple cider vinegar for the red wine vinegar, and yellow onion for the shallot. (That's just what I had on hand.)

Fixin' my sun hat

Preparing the picnic