Salad Inspirations

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Quite a few years ago, I had dinner at my friend Romney’s house. It could have been the atmosphere, the company and the laughter that helped make that meal so good, but it was the first salad that ever made an impression on me.

My friend is a beautiful, creative and warm person. A rosy-cheeked artist, her home was filled with great, funky things that belonged because she loved them. Even the plates were a mish-mash of Fiestaware and hand-painted, all showing off their colors from an open shelf. Everything about that night was relaxed and unpretentious from the music, the conversation and even the bread.

I can only call it an “everything salad” in that it had a ton of stuff in it. No recipe books or food shows could or would replicate it. It was the main course with a torn chunk of rustic bread and a glass of bright white wine. I can’t even tell you everything in it, but I do remember nasturtiums (edible flowers that grow well in Alaska) feta cheese, pecans, peas….

I’ve since made several of my own “everything salads” as a stand-alone meal. Adding unlikely pantry ingredients like dried apricots and any kind of fresh fruit or veg I have on hand, with crumbles of cheese, boiled eggs, leftover chicken, beans, artichoke hearts, tortellinis – you name it, all mixed in some greens.

Salads have become a sort of creative challenge for me. I get to experiment with flavors and textures and it doesn’t take a huge amount of skill or time. Here are a few that I’ve tried and have really enjoyed:

The Pacific Northwest Salad:
Spring greens, smoked salmon (or leftover cooked and flaked) snow peas (frozen peas work, too) fresh blueberries and goat cheese crumbles. Raspberry or a lemon-garlic vinaigrette for the dressing.

The Bistro Salad:
Spinach, sliced avocado, blue cheese crumbles, bacon crumbles (optional) dressed with a honey mustard. Then top off with a warm poached egg and some homemade croutons.

Fried Goat Cheese Salad:
To fry your goat cheese, slice into rounds and dip into egg, then seasoned bread crumbs to coat. Chill in fridge or freezer to get nice and cold. Then fry in a good amount of oil until golden on both sides. I add two slices of fried cheese to greens with roasted tomatoes and dress with a balsamic and thyme vinaigrette.

Now our garden is stuffed full of romaine, spinach and mesclun mixes. The sugar peas are ready, along with the radishes, carrots and beets. We’ve been eating a ton of salads lately. I’ll always try to add a protein to make my husband happy. Shrimp are easy and fast. Or if we have steak the night before, I’ll add thin slices of the leftovers to a salad creation (so good with Stilton cheese slices and the extra spice of radish and arugula!).

Ironically, some of my favorite salad plates (a gift from someone else) were hand-painted by my friend Romney Dodd. Whimsical flowers, plaids and bountiful colors are what my salads try to mirror on her plates, though salads of this magnitude often require a big pasta bowl! Edible art…. yum!