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Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Summer Salad

There's nothing like a nice crisp, even sweet, salad on these hot summer days.  Putting strawberries, orange sections, dried cranberries (preferably unsweetened), and candied pecans on a salad is nothing new to me.
A couple weeks ago I made a salad with some of these things (and yellow bell peppers), but the unique part was the greens.  Instead of packing the dressing with dried herbs, I put fresh herbs right in the salad, many from my window garden.  I mixed my own fresh romaine, finely chopped chives, tarragon, and a few other herbs, with store bought Italian parsley and baby greens. 

I used some of the juice that came out of the oranges when I sectioned them to start a dressing.  A basic salad dressing needs some fat, acid, and salt.  Acid can be fresh lemon juice or some type of vinegar; salt can be any kind of salt crystals, soy or tamari sauce; and fat is usually at least half olive oil.  I also like Dijon mustard and something sweet, like orange juice, honey, date syrup, etc.  If you taste it, use a piece of lettuce or vegetable. It should be strong, and tasting on a spoon or your finger won't give you an accurate idea.  If you dress the salad, always start with less than you think you will need.

2 comments:

  1. Great technique - putting herbs right in the salad must really pack it with flavor.

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  2. Taste it on a vegetable! Simple and brilliant.

    I love your blog. I was helping a friend set up her cooking blog yesterday, and she kept asking me about various food blogs and if I read them. I said, no! I only read Cooking Outside the Blog. Keep it up.

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