I’ve been tasked with salad duty for Thanksgiving. I was given a recipe for Waldorf salad, which I detest. So I want to counter with another salad. But it needs to be interesting, and it apparently can’t be Cesar salad.
Recommendations?
My old stand-by salad:
Asparagus Salad with Creamy Vinaigrette Dressing
This recipe makes about five servings
16 thin (thin as possible) asparagus stalks, cut on the diagonal into 1 1/2 inch pieces
About 1/3 head red lettuce, torn
About 1/3 head romaine lettuce, torn
1 cup of frisee (about one very small head), torn
1 1/2 cup endive greens, torn
1/3 cup sliced black olives
2 tsp of some flavored vinegar, I like raspberry with turkey or cider with pork
1 1/2 TSP sour cream
2 TSP olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Blanch asparagus for one minute (boil some water, throw in the asparagus for 1 minute, remove and run under cold water)
Toss asparagus with red lettuce, romaine, frisee, endive, and olives.
Whisk vinegar and sour cream together, salt and pepper to taste. Slowly add in the olive oil. Don’t put the dressing on the salad until right before you’re serving it, then toss and serve.
If you don’t like, or don’t want to seek out, the endive and frisee, you can use any combination of greens to get the volume you want.
My Other Salad:
Orange Onion Salad
This recipe is for eight servings
3 TSP orange juice
1 tsp lemon juice
1/3 olive oil
2 heads lettuce, bibb is good, or romaine would be okay
1 red onion, cut into VERY THIN round slices
4 navel oranges, rind and pith removed, cut into crosswise sections
Salt and pepper to taste
3 TSP chives, chopped
Cut the onion into slices, and soak in ice water for about an hour. Remove from water and blot dry with a paper towel.
Make dressing: whisk together orange and lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste, slowly add olive oil while whisking.
Put lettuce on platter, then onions, then oranges. Do not toss. Lightly pour the dressing over the salad, sprinkle with chopped chives.
Spinach is good -
An appropriate amount of baby spinach leaves, well washed and the stems trimmed
A smallish wedge of blue cheese, in crumbles or a package of crumbled blue cheese
An appropriate amount of mandarine orange slices drained [about a double tablespoon per person is good]
Half a large bag of whole walnut halves toasted in the oven - 4 oz?
a bottle of a good vinaigrette salad dressing - raspberry vinaigrette is good, but not a thick goopy dressing.
Make your basic tossed salad bowl of spinach and top with a nice looking arrangement of the different ingredients, and toss with the dressing just before serving.
My sister made this salad for our pre-Thamksgiving Thanksgiving. It was wonderful.
bags (10 oz. each) torn romaine lettuce
2 cans (15 oz. each) mandarin orange segments, drained
4 cups sliced strawberries
1 medium red onion, sliced
1 cup Caramelized Almonds
1 cup Poppy Seed Dressing
TOSS lettuce with oranges, strawberries and onion in large bowl.
SPRINKLE with Caramelized Almonds.
ADD Poppy Seed Dressing; mix lightly. Serve immediately.
Caramelized Almonds
1 cup Sliced Almonds
6 Tbsp. sugar
TOSS almonds with sugar in nonstick skillet; cook on medium-high heat until sugar is caramelized, stirring frequently.
SPREAD into single layer on greased baking sheet or sheet of wax paper; cool at least 1 hour.
BREAK into small pieces. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.
Poppy Seed Dressing
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/4 cup wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup canola oil
1 Tbsp. onion juice
3 Tbsp. Mayonnaise
4-1/2 tsp. poppy seed
BEAT sugar, salt, dry mustard and wine vinegar in medium bowl with wire whisk until well blended.
ADD olive oil, canola oil and onion juice; mix until well blended. Add mayo and poppy seed; mix well. Cover.
REFRIGERATE until ready to serve.
It’s very good and not difficult to make. You can prepare the componates ahead of time and mix when you get there.
StG
Mmmm… those all sound good. I think the asparagus one might go over best if I can find some good asparagus. Is that in season right now? My father hates spinach so we’ll have to save that one for later.