Sometimes salad is the last dish I feel like preparing. Maybe that’s because cleaning the veggies and making the same old dressings are not very adventurous. And at my age, I need all the adventure I can get that doesn’t involve doing something illegal, immoral, or hurting myself or those around me.

So last evening when contemplating what to fix for our dinner salad, I decided I needed to change things up a bit. Also two things had to happen. I needed to use a bit of the kale growing in my backyard half wine barrel, and some of the basil overflowing a pot sitting on the counter of my outdoor kitchen. So I decided the kale should be one of the greens for our salad, and the basil should go into the salad dressing.

And if you are going to have greens and basil, it’s almost required that you have some tomato action going on. (Luckily I had some ripe cherry tomatoes in another half wine barrel just waiting to be plucked.) Then a forlorn shallot called out to me, and the rest is history.

The dressing recipe I found on the food and wine site. I changed their recipe just a tiny bit, but I have to say, this recipe is basically perfect. Easy to prepare and fantastically delicious.

You could also use this dressing simply drizzled over sliced tomatoes, in place of the olive oil and chopped basil in a caprese salad, or over any type of green salad. It would also be perfect as the dressing for a pasta salad. The possibilities are endless.   

So before summer is over and basil, tomatoes, kale, and romaine are only available at your local grocery store, treat yourself to this salad. Remember, these are our salad days. (OK, for some of us our salad days were technically over several decades ago. But we can still feel young at heart and enthusiastic about life, especially if we continue watching what we put in our mouth. And this salad just happens to be the epitome of healthy and pleasurable eating. Not only good for us, but delectable. And that my friends doesn’t happen that often!)

Enjoy!

• 1 small garlic clove, rough chopped
•  ¼ c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 T. Champagne vinegar
• pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• ¼ tsp. kosher salt, or more to taste
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 c. packed basil leaves, coarsely chopped
• 1 heart of romaine, chopped
• 1 c. chopped kale, messaged (see below)
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• 2-3 Campari or Roma tomatoes, sliced, de-seeded, and cut into bit sized pieces or about ¾ of a cup of halved cherry or grape tomatoes (really – just whatever tomatoes you happen to have on hand will do)

In a food processor, pulse the garlic, olive oil, vinegar, crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper until smooth.  Add the basil and pulse until the basil is finely chopped. Set aside.

Place the cut romaine, massaged kale, sliced shallot, and tomato pieces (and whatever else strikes your fancy) in a salad bowl. Pour on the dressing and toss lightly. (You want all the veggies covered in the dressing, but you don’t want the tomatoes beat up!) Serve immediately.

Massaged Kale

Remove the fibrous ribs, wash, dry, and chop the kale into small pieces. Rub the kale pieces together with your fingers for about 2 minutes or until the leaves turn a darker color as the tough cellulose structure breaks down. Massaging kale actually eliminates the bitter taste making it a perfect green for almost any salad.

I call this an Italian salad because the dressing is more like an Italian dressing than not. I hope that makes sense. Of course it does to me, but sometimes my thinking is a bit off as I’m sure you have already perceived if you are familiar with my writing and recipes. Plus, I just couldn’t think of any other name for this combination of ingredients.

It all started because I thought I wanted to prepare a Panzanella Salad (Tuscan Bread Salad) for an Italian themed pre-concert supper I was preparing last Sunday. But when I realized that the three pastas I was serving plus the sourdough bread contained more than enough flour already, I decided a simple mixed salad with a kind of toned down “panzanella like” dressing would be perfect. Thus this recipe. BTW, if you love Panzanella Salad, please try my recipe already on this site.

And of course in my haste to get all the food set out for our guests, I failed to take a picture of this salad. But then, you all know what salad looks like. So you will simply have to use your imagination. (I can already hear those synapses (tiny gaps across your nerve cells or neurons sending impulses to other neurons causing your mind to be focused and electric) synapsing. In other words, I’m actually doing you a favor by not posting a picture of this salad. Proof once again that my thinking may be a bit off!)

Regardless, this is a really good salad and I hope you prepare it in the near future.

• 2 tsp. sugar 
• 1 tsp. kosher salt 
• freshly ground black pepper
• pinch crushed red pepper flakes 
• 1 clove garlic
• ¼ c. fresh parsley, loosely packed, then finely chopped 
• 2 T. red wine vinegar   
• juice of 1 lemon
• ¼ c. mayonnaise 
• ¼ c. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped into bite sized pieces
• ½ head iceberg lettuce, chopped into bite sized pieces
• ½ c. halved cherry or grape tomatoes
• ¼ red onion, very thinly sliced
• ½ English cucumber partially peeled, seeded, and diced  
• 1 yellow bell pepper, diced 

Whisk the sugar, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic, parsley, vinegar, lemon juice, mayonnaise, and olive oil together. Set aside or refrigerate.

Place the romaine lettuce, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, and yellow bell pepper in a large salad bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat the lettuce leaves.

Optional ingredients: Kalamata olives, thinly sliced pepperoncini, carrot, celery, basil, salami, cheese, etc. etc.  

The other evening I couldn’t decide whether to make a green salad or cook some asparagus to accompany the Cabbage Casserole with Meatballs (recipe on site) and roasted sweet and Yukon gold potato chunks I planned to serve to family. I really didn’t want to fix a total of 4 dishes for a simple family meal, (4 is too many, 2 not enough), so I decided to go on line and see what I could find that combined romaine and asparagus. Well I found a recipe for a salad with only 4 ingredients on the Genius Kitchen site. (Great site BTW!) Of course right away I changed 2 of the 4 ingredients. (Of course I did!) Plus the site only gave suggestions for a dressing, rather than including one on the post. So I invented one that I felt would best complement the romaine, asparagus, prosciutto, and almonds.

And darn, if the salad didn’t turn out good. In fact it was delicious! And easy to fix. And each part could be prepared ahead of time and assembled just before serving. (My kind of salad, especially when cooking for guests!)

So next time you want a salad that also includes a green veggie, give this recipe a try. And yes, combining the salad and veggie is kind of a lackadaisical way of cooking. But I prefer to think of it as merely being “efficient”. I could of course refer to myself as simply being lazy. But lazy has such a negative connotation. I’ll stick with efficient.  

• 1 T. finely diced shallot
• ¼ tsp. kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 T. sour cream
• ¼ c. extra virgin olive oil   
• 4-5 slices prosciutto 
• 1 lb. asparagus, woody ends removed and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1½ hearts of romaine lettuce, cut into bite sized pieces
• ¼ c. toasted slivered almonds

Whisk together the shallot, salt, pepper, mustard, lemon juice, sour cream, and olive oil. Store in the refrigerator until needed.

Place slices of prosciutto on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for about 13 minutes or until fairly crisp. Remove from oven and let cool. Break or cut into pieces; set aside.

Blanch the asparagus pieces in boiling water for 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Immediately dump into a bowl of ice water. When cold, drain and use a couple of paper towels to blot dry. Set aside.

When ready to serve, toss the prosciutto, asparagus, lettuce, and toasted almonds together. Add enough of the salad dressing to moisten the salad nicely, but not drown the ingredients. 

Note: The beauty of this salad, besides being delicious, is that every part can be prepared ahead of time. Isn’t that nice!

I love Cooking Light magazine. And this recipe is just one of the many reasons.

This dressing and how it is served is the inspiration of the magazine editor, Hunter Lewis. In his “note from the editor” in the May 2017 issue, Mr. Lewis writes that when he serves this salad, quote “even after I’ve spent hours smoking a pork shoulder or roasting a prime rib for a dinner party; it’s this dressing that friends ask me to send them the next day.”

So far be it from me to question Mr. Lewis’s friend’s judgement. So I gave the salad a try. And – oh my!  This is now one of the best ways I know to eat kale. (Not that it’s a task to get me to eat my kale. I love kale almost any old way. OK, I haven’t had a kale smoothie or whatever they call those green drinks that are supposed to be good for you. I feel I’m still too young to start ingesting my vegetables in blendered form. I’m saving that for when I get really old and necessity dictates that I no longer chew my food!)  

I first made this salad for a Carr family dinner a month or so ago and my sister-in-law Katie was especially fond of it. Everyone else at table enjoyed it too, so of course I had to share it with you all. So I put the recipe in a safe place so I wouldn’t forget to publish it at my earliest convenience. Need I explain further? Of course I forgot all about it until last evening when again the Carr family sat down to dinner and Katie asked if I had published the recipe. I automatically assumed I had, because my intension was to do so. But when I checked this morning, no such recipe existed on my blog. (It’s terrible when you can’t remember something as simple as whether or not you posted a recipe! Makes me wonder what else is escaping my notice. Anyone else over the age of required distributions from your IRAs having the same problem? If so, please let me know so I can accept my fate with equanimity. But enough about the trials and tribulations of aging, and back to this delightful recipe.

Now I know this dressing is perfect with kale, but I see no reason why it wouldn’t be just as delicious over an assortment of salad greens or drizzled over sliced heirloom tomatoes. So do not hesitate. Prepare this dressing and get ready for a fantastic treat.

And Mr. Lewis, please accept my thanks for sharing this recipe with all of us.

Your devoted fan, Patti

• 4 anchovy fillets
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 T. drained capers
• 1 T. Dijon mustard
• ¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• ¼ tsp. ground cumin
• ¼ tsp. kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• grated rind and juice of 2 lemons
• ½ c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 bunches shredded lacinato or curly kale (or a combination)  
• 1 c. finely grated Parmesan cheese

Chop anchovy fillets, garlic, and capers in a mini food processor (or blender). Add the Dijon mustard, red pepper flakes, cumin, salt, pepper, lemon rind and juice, and olive oil; process for 1 minute. Adjust seasoning. (Not too much salt. Remember, the Parmesan will also add salt to the mix.)

Place kale and Parmesan in a salad bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat the leaves. (Do not overdress the salad.) Refrigerate leftover dressing.