Lucky 13 Lunch Salad

I came home for lunch yesterday and put together healthy green salad. I counted 13 ingredients, not counting the dressing, thus the name.

• Lettuces and Spinach
• Romaine & some stuff I don't know the name of from the "salad bowl" I bought at the Farmer's Market Saturday. (See below)
• Red Cabbage
• Strawberries
• Zucchini
• Yellow Squash
• Red Pepper
• Cilantro
• Grated Hard Cheeses
• Feta Cheese
• Croutons
• Cucumber
• Almonds
• Sunflower Seeds
• Janz Sweet Balsamic Vinaigrette

You can see I tore up the green stuff, sliced the zucchini and yellow squash really thin. I didn't peel the squash, (I scrubbed them thoroughly since I wasn't going to peel them)but I did peel the cucumber. I sliced very thin layers from my red cabbage, and thin slivers from a red pepper.
The strawberries were HUGE, so they were quartered and then sliced.
The nuts are in a plastic bag in the freezer, so I just grabbed a handful for the top. The croutons were fresh, in my toaster over, so those topped everything off.


The strawberry is a very surprising addition to a green salads. I saw it somewhere about a year ago and really like the pop of tartness you get in the midst of the other ingredients. Of course the strawberries have to be fresh—frozen would be mushy—so I do this when they're in season. I've also used blackberries and blueberries. As I ate it I wondered about adding banana slices. It would have to be a firm banana, but I'll try that while I can still get fresh strawberries and see how it goes.



About the "Salad Bowl"
A vendor at the Cleveland County Farmer's Market sells pots full of mixed lettuces. This one was $2.50 I think. I put it on my porch on Saturday and let it get too dry and Sunday it was droopy and completely limp. Thank goodness a good soaking brought it back to life. We had a thunderstorm on Sunday night and on Monday it was back to full crispness.

NHS Band Teacher Appreciation Salad

Janz Salad Basics

• Green Leafy Stuff
• Romaine
• Green Leaf Lettuce
• Cilantro
• Italian Parsley
  
• Bright Stuff
• Red Pepper
• Purple Onion
• Red Cabbage
  
• Strawberries
• Other Stuff
• Mushrooms
• Feta Cheese
• Hard Cheese Mix (Parmesan, Romano, Asiago)
• Garnishes
• Almonds
• Sunflower Seeds
• Homemade Croutons

To Assemble:

1. Tear all green leafy stuff (lettuce, cilantro, parsley) put in a salad bowl.
2. Slice cabbage, dice pepper, slice mushrooms and strawberries and crumbled Feta cheese into the salad.
   
3. Sprinkle with sunflower seeds & slivered almonds.
4. Break thick dry toasted seasoned French bread into bite-size croutons.
5. Drizzle with with vinaigrette and toss.
   

Janz Sweet Balsamic Vinaigrette

1. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2. Balsamic Vinegar
   
3. Honey Mustard
   
4. Honey
   
5. Janz Seasoning Blend
6. Pepper
   
7. Tabasco
   

This is one variation of Janz Sweet Balsamic Vinaigrette. I use the small jar in the photo to mix my dressings.

• Start with about an inch of extra virgin olive oil
  
• An inch of balsamic vinegar
  
• A generous squeeze of honey mustard. Maybe a couple of teaspoons...
  
• More honey, probably a tablespoon or so.
  
• Add your favorite herbs, basil, oregano, garlic... ground herbs mix best
• A splash of Tabasco

Put the lid on tight and shake well. I always hold it inside the sink just in case I have a mismatched lid and it leaks. I'd rather not sling oil all over my clothes, it never happens, unless I'm dressed for work and don't have time to change!

As to "your favorite herbs..." I've come up with my own blend of favorites that I call Janz Seasoning Blend. This is something I mix up every few months and use it in almost everything. It started out as equal parts of ground basil, oregano and garlic powder and now the ingredient list is as more or less follows: basil oregano, thyme, rosemary, savory, sage, onion powder, garlic powder, and marjoram. I usually use dried herbs and when I get it mixed and it smells right, I grind it into a very fine powder. I have a clean coffee grinder I use just for grinding herbs.

The fine powder seems to readily dissolve into a salad dressing. I also use it as seasoning for croutons. Before I came up with this seasoning concoction, I flavored homemade vinaigrette with basil, oregano, thyme... whatever herbs seemed to be right at the time. Let your taste buds be your guide if you don't have a favorite herb blend. Any leftover dressing can be refrigerated for your next salad.