Seafood and Fire Roasted Pepper Salad

For six servings

INGREDIENTS:

= 1½ lb. cleaned squid, cut into bite-sized rings and tentacles

= ½ lb. cleaned and cooked salad shrimp

= 2 canned fire roasted sweet red peppers – cut into long strips  

= ¼ cup white wine vinegar

= 3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice

= 1 tablespoon of minced garlic   

= ½ cup of extra-virgin olive oil

= ½ cup of red onion – finely sliced

= 2 tablespoons of capers

= ½ cup of Castelvetrano pitted green olives – roughly chopped

= Parsley leaves – roughly chopped  

= Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

COOKING:

To boil squid – in a large pot bring 4 qtr. of salted water to a boil. I put 1 tablespoon of salt.

Add the cleaned squid, its tentacles, and shrimp to the boiling water, again bring to the boil and cook until tender – about 1-2 minutes. Drain the shellfish and, if necessary, plunge it into the cold water to stop cooking. Drain well and dry on a towel.

In a large mixing bowl combine lemon juice, garlic, vinegar, 1 teaspoon of Kosher or sea salt and ¼ teaspoon of ground black pepper and set aside for 5 minutes. Add the olive oil in a thin stream, whisking constantly until the dressing is well blended.

Cut squid into bite-sized rings.

Add the cooked and cut squid, its tentacles, shrimp, stripes of fire roasted pepper, capers, red onion, and chopped olives to the dressing and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 2-3 hours to blend the flavors.

Take the mixing bowl with squid salad out of the fridge at least 1 hour prior to serving to make sure the olive oil is warm enough and is not too thick. Mix well and adjust vinegar and seasoning if needed. Add chopped parsley, put the salad in a serving bowl and serve.