My New and Improved Salad

salad Salad, no dressing please. This is a request no one would ever hear come out of my mouth, but now I’m not so sure. My friend Kelly invited me over for dinner the other night and served a spring green salad with it. When I asked where was the dressing, she responded pleasantly that she didn’t use dressing. Well, I’m somewhat of a food adventurist and decided to dive in and give it a try. It had cheddar cheese on it, maybe that would suffice. Well, I was pleasantly surprised. It tasted great! And with my analtical nature, I sought to figure out why. The key is the type of greens. I was raised on romaine lettuce and homemade Italian dressing which I continue to make for my dinner side. I’ve perfected this salad. But, the salad needs the dressing. The dressing is the most important ingredient! The salad Kelly served was a mix of fresh baby spinach, baby romaine and baby leaf. The flavors of these plants are less bitter, and when topped with cheese, are quite flavorful.

So the last few nights I have changed my childhood salad recipe and swapped out my romaine for a new type of greens. I still love my dressing, so I’ve kept that, but make it much milder so as to not overpower the mild and flavorful taste of the greens. I also added a couple of other lettuces that taste good too. But, seriously…if I run out of vinegar, I won’t be running out the door as quickly and will not be afraid to just eat it as is.

Here is the recipe, so simple and so good

Mama Theresa’s Spring Salad

Serves enough for one large personal salad or two small side salads

In a medium sized bowl mix the following:

Two cups of mixed fresh fresh baby butter, tango, baby spinach, baby leaf, and baby romaine lettuces.
A few slices of dark red bell pepper
A few slices of cucumber
A quarter cup of thinly sliced red cabbage
One diced green onion including both bulb and chive
2-3 oz of diced medium to sharp cheddar cheese

Now the dressing here is a lighter version of my normal dressing, but perfect. I’ll be honest, I’m estimating the amount below as I just pour and shake but this feels right. In the end, start light, and add more if you need more flavor.