Smoked Salmon Salad (Nicoise-Style)

I am very lucky. I love fresh & smoked salmon, but never have to use the canned variety & even have a salmon cookbook. This recipe is the 1st of 2 I found at justsmokedsalmon.com & they acknowledged Marilou Robinson of Portland, OR. Her intro said "The ingredient list looks long, but none of it takes much time to prepare & it can all be done ahead of time. Because this salad needs to be made ahead & chilled, it is a good choice for a Sun night supper. When guests arrive, heat an assortment of fancy rolls from your favourite bakery & relax w/your company. Everyone will be impressed & well-fed. The recipe can easily serve as many as you like by just increasing the amt of ingredients & using a larger platter." Enjoy! (Time has been estimated & does not include time for beans, eggs & potatoes to cool after they are cooked)

• Ready In: 25 mins
• Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 1 (10 -12 ounce) bag romaine lettuce (torn into bite-size pieces)
• 1  head butter lettuce (torn into bite-size pieces)
• 8  ounces smoked salmon (very thinly sliced)
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen green beans (cooked, drained & chilled)
• 1  pint cherry tomatoes (halved)
• 1  small green bell pepper (cut into rings)
• 1  small red onion (sliced & separated into rings)
• 3  eggs (hard-boiled, peeled & cut into wedges)
• 3  small  red potatoes (cooked, chilled & quartered)
• 1⁄2 cup black olives
• 3⁄4 cup  vinaigrette dressing (bottled red wine)
• 2  tablespoons capers

Directions

1. Cook beans, hard-boil eggs & potatoes. Set aside & allow to completely cool. While they are cooling, prepare & slice onion & bell pepper.
2. Line a lrg platter w/lettuce & mound smoked salmon in the centre. Arrange beans, tomatoes, pepper rings, onion rings, egg wedges, potatoes & olives over the lettuce & around the salmon.
3. Cover platter & chill at least 2 hours Just B4 serving, drizzle w/salad dressing & sprinkle w/capers.
4. HINT: To easily slice smoked salmon, put it in the freezer. When nearly frozen, remove from the freezer & use your sharpest knife to shave very thin slices.