Salad dressing

As I walked down the aisle of "condiments" at the supermarket I was astounded to see the number and variety of salad dressings available for sale. Does anyone ever stop to read the ingredients on these mostly unnatural foods? Most contain public enemy number one: corn syrup. All seem to have an endless ingredient list of items that I can't even pronounce, much less decipher.

Lettuce is an amazing gift from the earth: delicate, pungent, full of flavor. Why then do we insist on drowning it it with these thick, gelatinous concoctions?

Here is my proposal for those of us on the cusp of the new year: open your frig and throw out every single botttle of salad dressing. Now, go to your local market and buy a bottle of good olive oil and a bottle of well aged balasamic vinegar.

In the time it would've taken to unscrew a bottle of salad dressing and read the list of ingredients, you can make a delicate, but flavorful dressing that accenuates the lettuce and doesn't drown it. I learned this basic method from my parents who have been making salads like this for decades!

Annie's Salad Dressing
In the bottom of your salad bowl (preferably a wooden one)
Smash a clove of garlic, if you so desire.
Add 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
Add 1-2 teaspoons of balasamic vinegar.
Grind in a hearty amount of both salt and pepper.
Let this rest until the rest of your meal is ready and you are about to sit down for dinner.
---
Now, some enjoy adding a teaspoon of sugar or a little Dijon mustard. Other favor fresh lemon juice over balsamic vinegar. Experiment. Find out what suits your tastes best.
I'm sure you'll soon discover that it's loads more fun to create your own personal house dressing than unscrewing a $3.79 bottle of goop!

Here's are some of my favorite toppings for salads:
Ground sesame seeds (grind with a Japanese sesame seed grinder -- can be found at most Asian grocery stores)
Sunflower seeds, roasted and salted
Walnuts, roasted and salted
Cranberries, nonsweetened if you can find them

Wednesdays

This is where I go every Wednesday morning to see what's being written about food in newspapers across the country: Saute Wednesday