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How
to Make Fabulous Green Salads
By Cheri Sicard of FabulousFoods.com
A
green salad can be one of those dishes that really sings
on your plate, or it can be the ho-hum obligation that
you eat because you think you should. The difference between
the two is often just a matter of a few simple tips and
small details. This page will give you lots of hints and
tips on great green salad making. Put them to use in your
kitchen and you'll soon be turning out exciting salads
that your dinner guests will be talking about later.
* Get creative with greens - gone are the days when salad
meant a few leaves of wilted iceberg lettuce drizzled
with a fat laden creamy dressing. Today's markets have
a wide variety of salad greens. Try to use several varieties
in your salads. For convenience you can buy premixed mesclun,
which contains a variety of greens. You can also blend
your own by going through the produce department and mixing
and matching greens. Some that will add interesting flavors
to the mix are the slightly bitter chicories such as endive
or radicchio, peppery arugula or even mild baby spinach.
Look for interesting textures and colors in your greens
as well. Maybe add some frisee or curly red leaf lettuce
for extra dimension.
* If you bought a pre-washed mesclun mix, you won't have
to worry about cleaning the greens, otherwise they should
be thoroughly washed. The hardest part of this is that
salad greens should also be dried before being turned
into salad, otherwise they will water down the dressing.
A salad spinner is a handy kitchen gadget that actually
works quite well (order online or pick them up for a song
any weekend at a local garage sale). Otherwise, after
shaking off most of the water, you can roll the washed
lettuce in paper towels to help absorb the remaining moisture.
* Plan on about 2 cups of mixed greens per person.
* For a slightly sweet, mild anise flavor, try adding
some chopped fresh fennel bulb to your salad or using
fennel as the basis of the salad itself.
* You can add all kinds of other vegetables to your salads
depending on your mood. I generally prefer simpler salads
that allow one or two ingredients to really shine, but
to each his own. Tomatoes and onions seem to be standard
fare but don't forget cucumbers, shredded carrots, shredded
cabbage, avocado, olives, celery, cauliflower, broccoli,
radishes, peas, corn, beans, etc.
* Lightly steamed veggies that have been chilled also
make excellent salad additions, think asparagus, green
beans, broccoli or cauliflower.
* While raw mushrooms are a staple of many salad recipes,
I now avoid them. Mycology expert Charmoon Richardson
of the Sonoma, California company "Wild About Mushrooms"
recently taught me that raw mushrooms are slightly toxic
(these elements are released during cooking).
* Fruit can add a bright flavor surprise to green salads.
For just a few suggestions, try adding a small amount
of sliced fresh strawberries, blueberries or raspberries
to your salad mix. Citrus fruit like orange or grapefruit
slices or fresh pineapple go really well, especially with
dark greens like spinach. Add tropical flavor with fruits
like mango or papaya or my favorite. In fall, be sure
to try my favorite salad fruit: fresh pomegranate seeds.
* Ingredients that really make a salad sing! The following
ingredients are so potent in flavor, you only have to
use a small amount, but they will add a distinctive, unforgettable
flavor to your salads: crumbled bacon bits; crumbled hard
boiled egg; crumbled strong cheeses such as blue cheese,
gorgonzola, Roquefort or feta; brine cured olives such
as kalamatas; toasted nuts or seeds; anchovies.
* Try roasting vegetables on the grill or roasting them
in the oven before adding to salads (you can chill first,
or add them warm). This works well for onions, asparagus,
zucchini, mushrooms (especially portobellos), and many
others.
* Add grilled chicken, beef or even tofu to your salad
and turn it into a meal.
* If you like toasted nuts on your salad, try sugared
nuts, such as pecans or walnuts, for an even greater flavor
spectrum. To make these nuts, 2 1/4 cups nuts with 1 cup
sugar and 1/2 cup of water in a heavy skillet. Cook the
mixture until the water evaporates and the nuts have a
crystal, sugary appearance. Pour onto a baking sheet coated
in waxed paper ad immediately separate the nuts with a
fork. Let cool, store in airtight container.
* Mixed green salads with warm goat cheese are on the
menus of countless trendy restaurants today, but it's
easy to duplicate this feat at home. Simply take a log
of goat cheese ad slice into slices about 1/2 - 3/4 of
an inch thick. Lightly coat the cheese slices with either
some seasoned breadcrumbs or finely chopped nuts. Place
on a lightly greased baking sheet and place under the
boiler. Watch carefully, it takes less than a minute!
Broil just until the cheese starts to melt (if you wait
too long you will end up it a runny mess). Remove cheese
from oven and use a wide spatula to transfer one cheese
slice onto each serving plate of dressed, mixed greens.
Dressing
the Salad
* Do not over dress, salad only needs about 1 teaspoon
of dressing per person, as long as you toss it well.
* A lighter vinaigrette type dressing will allow the flavors
of the salad to come through.
* A basic vinaigrette than can be tossed right on the
salad is about 1 1/2 tsp. vinegar to 2 tsp. oil. Sprinkle
the vinegar on first, then toss, then sprinkle on the
oil and toss again. If you do it the other way around,
the oil will keep the vinegar from adhering to the leaves.
Season with salt and pepper.
* Play with types of oil and vinegars you use. Try red
or white wine vinegars or seasoned rice vinegar.
* Use vinegar somewhat sparingly as the taste can easily
overpower all other flavors.
* Extra virgin olive oil is great, but you can play with
the flavor by adding part nut oils, such as hazelnut or
almond oil. A few drops of sesame oil will give your salad
an exotic Asian flair.
* Substitute acidic fruit juice for all or part of the
vinegar in a vinaigrette. Try using lemon, lime, orange,
apple or pineapple juices.
* To add flavor and dimension to your vinaigrette dressings,
try adding ingredients like minced shallot, garlic, ginger,
onion or green onion. Play with the flavors by adding
small amounts of flavoring ingredients such as mustard,
honey, hot sauce or soy sauce.
* Small amounts of fresh herbs can add a whole new flavor
dimension to salads and salad dressings. Try basil, thyme
leaves, chives or tarragon. Experiment and have fun with
herbs.
Favorite
Salad Combos
Below are some of my favorite salad combos, the ones I
make at home, over and over again. I'm sure you'll come
up with some great new ones of your own. Email them to
m, if you'd like to share (cheri@fabulousfoods.com).
1. Baby spinach, thinly sliced red onions and mandarin
orange slices in an orange juice vinaigrette with toasted
pine nuts.
2. Mesclun, candied pecans or toasted pecans, crumbled
blue cheese and pomegranate seeds in a light vinaigrette.
3. Mixed greens, chopped tomato, thinly sliced Vidalia
onion, avocado and bacon bits. This salad goes well with
either vinaigrette or a creamy blue cheese dressing.
4. Chopped fennel and chopped Belgian endive with mandarin
orange slices in a rice vinegar vinaigrette with a touch
of sesame oil. Top with toasted sesame seeds. Chopped,
seeded cucumber is another nice ingredient in this salad,
either in addition to or instead of either the fennel
or endive.
5. Mixed greens, shredded carrot, shredded red cabbage,
crumbled bacon bits, crumbled blue cheese and candied
walnuts.
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