The Big Salad

I am a Seinfeld fan. When Dane and I were dating in college, we spent one fall break together watching every season, every episode. We only took breaks to eat. As a result of binge watching, many of the episodes are a blur, but I do remember the soup nazi, George sleeping under his desk, sidling, and of course, Elaine’s big salad.

Here’s a clip to remind you. “Tomatoes like volleyballs.”

This is how I envision the big salad, and it’s without-a-doubt the best salad I make.

My mom gave me this recipe, and it’s a knock-off of Garozzo’s house salad. If you live in Kansas City, hopefully you've heard of Garozzo’s, and if not, now you have a reason to go experience some real Italian food. 

I mentioned in an earlier post ("Daily Bread") that Dane and I eat the big salad for dinner at least once a week. To serve two, I usually cut the recipe in half, but here is the big version.

Salad:

About 10 oz. romaine (get the good organic kind in the big, plastic tub--it's greener, leafier, ergo healthier, and has a longer shelf life)

1 good-sized red onion, sliced 

1 big jar (or 2 small jars) of artichoke hearts, drained and chopped up

Two of my favorite things.

Dressing:

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 Tsp. sugar 

Whisk together the dressing, and toss it all together! I think the dressing is my favorite part. Or maybe the onions. Or artichokes. 

So pretty.

Eat immediately. This salad doesn’t keep, but don’t worry, you won’t have leftovers. If you are taking this salad to a party, keep the romaine, veggies, and dressing separate until you're ready to toss and serve.

Get fancy and serve it up with some bread, oil and balsamic for dipping, and some red wine (I'm drinking Louis Martini Cabernet Sauvignon).  

Enjoy!

-Madison

Kara's Birthday

So, my husband Dane and I have this friend named Jack. When Jack told us that he had finally started dating this great girl, we were excited. When Jack told us that this girl had just so happened to have moved to Russia, we were skeptical of her existence. (Think, “Darn, I wish you could meet her, but she’s in Russia. Take my word for it; she’s real.”)

Then she finally moved back from Russia, and we discovered, not only is she real, but also, she is awesome.

Go Sporting!

Thanks to Kara, I’ve had some new adventures in gardening.

 

Wait, when was the last time I watered my plants . . .

Kara is a much more impressive gardener than me, and you can see her blog here.

Dane and I missed Kara’s birthday party while we were on vacation, so we had a belated celebration. Who doesn't love a good party?

It was unanimous between the four of us: we should grill. We have to grill. We stuck to good ol’ fashioned burgers--both meat and veggie--but I wanted to try something a little crazy for our side: roasted beet and pear salad.

This recipe comes from Anne Burrell, whom I love, mostly because she talks to her food. The salad is essentially shredded pears and roasted beets tossed in a balsamic vinaigrette over greens—specifically arugula. However, I do not love arugula, so instead I used a spring mix. I also went without the marcona almonds that the recipe calls for because my grocery store isn’t posh enough to carry those. And because money.

I like big beets, and I cannot lie.

Roasting up the beets was easy peasy. The shredding was a little tedious, but I actually enjoyed the mess (which is weird for me).

Tip : Rub baking soda on your hands to get rid of the pink beet stain if you don't like the whole ax murderer look.

The salad was tangy and sweet and definitely not boring. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product (sorrynotsorry, we were having a party!), but food network didn’t forget, so you can go check out the source. 

Last, but certainly not least, Kara made dessert—lemon lavender cookies. I love it when Kara bakes cookies, because she adds in fresh herbs from her garden. Here is the base recipe for those--have fun with it! Add your own lavender or other herbs and flavors and go with or without frosting or glaze.

Enjoy! 

-Madison