Conference turris::cooks

    Ray .... I have never tried this recipe, nor does it include honey
    or mustard.  I thought I would include it because you have yet to
    receive a reply for your request....
    
    WORLD'S GREATEST HOT SPINACH SALAD
                       
    1 (10 oz) pkg. fresh spinach,         4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
      washed, torn in bite-size pieces    1/2 teaspoon celery salt
    4 hard-cooked eggs, sliced            1/2 cup water
    2 tablespoons chopped radishes        3 tablespoons lemon juice
    8 slices bacon                        1 tablespoon horseradish
    1/4 cup sliced green onion            1 tablespoon Worcestershire
    
    
    Place spinach, hard-cooked eggs and radishes in a salad bowl.
    Refrigerate until serving time.  Just before serving, cook bacon
    in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until crisp.  Drain bacon
    on paper towels.  Reserve 1/3 cup drippings in skillet.  Crumble
    bacon and set aside.  Cook onion in reserved drippings over medium-high
    heat until tender, stirring occasionally.  Blend in flour and celery
    salt.  Add water, lemon juice, horseradish and Worcestershire sauce.
    Stir constantly over medium-high heat until mixture thickens and
    bubbles.  Stir crumbled bacon into sauce.  Pour sauce over spinach
    mixture and toss.  Serve immediately.  Makes 6 servings.
    
    wmf

	Suggestions:
	-------------------------
	Spinach, mushrooms, scallions, crumbled bacon with dressing:
	Dijon vinaigrette
	Mix:	1Tbsp Lemon juice
		1Tsp  Smooth Grey Poupon Mustard
		Dash of black pepper
	Whisk in 1 cup olive oil, slowly
	-------------------------
	Tortellini (Pasta) Salad:
	Mix in a bowl:
		1 lb cheese tortellini, cooked per directions, run 
		   under cold water and drained
		1 med head of broccoli cut into spears, steamed 2 minutes,
		   run under cold water, and drained
		1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
		1 small jar roasted red peppers (Mancini) cut into strips
		1 Jar Marie's Garlic dressing
	-------------------------    
	Broccoli Salad:
	Mix in a bowl:
		1 lg head of broccoli cut into spears, steamed 2 minutes,
		   run under cold water, and drained
		1 Tbsp minced onion
		1 clove minced garlic
		1 jar green olives with pimento (the broken pieces,
		   not the whole stuffed ones) WITH JUICE
	Let sit at least a day in the fridge.

						     
							- JP

    Here's one of my favorites:
    
    	Romaine or Boston lettuce
    	Mandarin orange segments
    	Chopped green onions
    	Chopped blanched almonds
    
    	Toss everything in a bowl with Italian salad dressing.

CRANBERRY-RASPBERRY JELLO MOLD:

This is a goodie I invented for last thanksgiving:

     INGREDIENTS:

     Cranraspberry juice (bottled kind from welches)
     frozen or fresh raspberries
     unflavored geletin  in packets (spelling is in question)
     optional:  whipping cream - whipped without sugar

Rinse and drain well the raspberries (for a large mold, you can use
up to two cups)

heat two cups juice almost to boil, and disolve two pkts geletin in
the juice - if you want extra sweetness, you can add 1/2 cup sugar,
but I did not feel the need.

Add two cups cold juice and stir well.  chill until the consistency
of egg whites.  At this point, you can fold in 1 - 1 1/2 cups
whipped cream and the drained berries and place in a mold.  chill
until firm.  I did not use the cream so I got a crystal clear
product.  Adding goodies is okay, just read the geletin box for
how much you can add.  

UNMOLDING THE SUCKER:

As I hate greasy jello, I do not oil my mold...to unmold, place the
mold top-down on a serving plate and wrap a hot cloth around it
for a few minutes.  The jello will slip out onto the plate.
You may need to apply the cloth more than once, but it will
melt just enough of the jello to release the mold.

This technique will work with almost any juice that has been "canned"
or jarred...raw juice may not allow the jello to mold so be careful.

Salads:

With everything else so rich, I have created a tart, marinated
vegetable to serve cold with the dinner in place of salad.

     Broccoli flowerettes
     cauliflower flowerettes
     sweet red pepper strips
     snow pea pods
     sweet yellow pepper strips

Steam the broccoli, cauliflower, and pea pods (if you like) just
until crisp (like 4 minutes) tender.  Plunge in ice water to
stop the cooking, drain.  Mix all veggies with a tangy marinade made
with olive oil, lemon juice, herbs of your choice and salt
and pepper of your choice (ratio of ingredients are the same
as for your garden variety vinegarette).  Let this sit in the
fridge at least two hours, up to 8 hours.  Serve in lettuce
cups and garnish with fresh parsley and cherry tomatoes.
or just dump into a big lettuce lined bowl.

    I have two recipes for Cucumber Salad, one is for a vinagar based
    dressing and the other is with a creamy base.  I always add ingedients
    and then taste to see if it's the right amount so the recipe may
    need a little more or less determine this while preparing.
    
    Cucumber Salad #1
    
    Slice one large Cucumber
    add to this 
    1/8 cup of vinegar
    1/4 tsp of sugar
    salt and pepper to taste
    
    
    
    Cucumber Salad #2
    
    Slice one large cucumber
    
    In separate bowl combine
    dash of vinegar
    1 container of sour cream
    and sugar to sweeten
    
    and to cucumbers
    chill and serve
    

    What about a salad?  One of my popular ones is:
    
    spinach and any dark green lettuce, torn into pieces
    red onion, sliced and separated to make rings
    1 can of mandarin oranges, light syrup, drained
    sliced almonds
    grated parmesan cheese
    poppyseed or sweet vinaigrette dressing
    
    Toss all together!
    
    Minden of Portland, Oregon
    

    		
    
    		A PRETTY STRAWBERRY SALAD
    
    1/3 cup vegetable oil
    3 tbls cider vinegar
    2 tbls water
    1 1/2 tbls honey
    1 tbls poppy seeds
    1/2 tsp salt
    1/2 tsp paprika
    1/4 tsp pepper
    Butter lettuce
    1 pint strawberries, stemmed and halved
    1 small red onion, sliced and separated into rings
    
    In blender combine oil, vinegar, water, honey, poppy seeds, salt,
    paprika, and pepper. Blend until thoroughly mixed; set aside.  Line
    4 individual salad plates with lettuce.  Arrange strawberries and
    onion rings equally on lettuce. stir dressing before serving and
    pass separately.

    
     Rep. 0
    
      Here's the one I use,
    
      1/3 C fresh Lemon juice
      1/2 C Olive Oil
      1 tsp Mixed Herbs <I like Herbs de Provence>
      2-3 Tbp of Corsely chopped walnuts or pinenuts
    
      Mix the first three ingredients in a bowl with a whisk
      until it thickens and then add the nuts. This is great
      over grated carrots which is my favorite winter salad.
      It is also good over fined chopped endive which also
      makes a very good winter salad. Now if the endive here
      was as cheap as it was in France.
    
      -mike
     

    Might want to try something like a mixture of half and half walnut and
    olive oil with raspberry vinegar and a touch of ginger and lots of
    fresh ground black pepper. This has a nice rich flavor with a bit of a
    bite.
    
    Tamzen 

    I've had a version of this salad at Betsy's in the Champlain Mill
    in Winooski, VT.  She used a light vinaigrette and included feta
    cheese and thinly sliced onion in the salad. The cheese crumbled
    apart and created a tangy, bright flavor with the vegetables.
    
    Sue

    
     While we're on the subject of summer salads....here's a delicious
     7 layer tossed salad to enjoy.
      
     Serves 10
    
     ingredients:
     
     1 head iceberg lettuce
     1/2 cup chopped green pepper
     1/2 cup chopped celery
     1 medium Bermuda onion, chopped
     1/4 cup shredded purple cabbage
     1 small box of frozen baby peas
     1 cup hellmans mayonaise
     2 tablespoons of sugar
     1/4 cup spicy radish sprouts
     2 cups crispy croutons - I've used onion and chive, or garlic
    
     its easy:  Layer vegetables in order given; spread mayo over top;
     sprinkle sugar and sprouts over, top with croutons; chill 3-5 hours
     mix thoroughly just before serving...it's delicious!!
    
     Also on the subject of summer salads, I had a delicious smoked ham
     and carrot salad for an appetizer at a restaurant recently...
     any clues on what goes into a carrot salad? I think there may have
     been raisins in there
    
     Thanks for the rice salad recipie...i use 'Louisiana Cookin' all the
    time....
    
    n
    
    

My mother makes a very simple carrot salad:

    - shredded carrots
    - crushed pineapple
    - raisins
    - sunflower seeds or walnuts

You have to let it sit for a while so the raisins soften and fill up with 
juice.

    
      I made up my own carrot salad recipie over the weekend--it came out
      delicious I call it "Pippin Salad" don't ask why, there are no apples
      in it.
    
      Pippin Salad
      ------ -----
    
      1 package fresh garlic and cheese tortelini, cooked al dente (4 min)
      1/2 cup shredded carrots
      1/4 cup thin sliced, then quartered radishes
      1/4 cup chopped bermuda onion
      1/4 cup raisins
      1/4 cup spicey radish or alfalfa sprouts
      3 tablespoons dijon vinigarette dressing
      1 teaspoon of sugar
      about a teaspoon of lemon juice
      salt, pepper, parsley
       
      prepare ingredients, mix together, chill 1-2 hours and let the
      raisins get soft....it was yummy
      
      I'll try the crushed pineapple next time :-)  thanks

    I made this last night.  It's quite easy, and light-light-light.
    Perfect for summer.  I used green seedless grapes in the dressing, red
    in the salad - the colors made it really pretty on the plate. And the
    flavors play together in an intriguing, sort of surprising, way. It's
    an elegant dish I wouldn't hesitate to serve with a formal meal. 
    
	    WATERCRESS SALAD WITH CHEESE, GRAPES, AND TOASTED WALNUTS
    
    
    2 bunches watercress, rinsed and stemmed
    3 ounces Monterrey Jack Cheese, grated (about 3/4 cup)
    1-1/2 cups seedless grapes, green or red, halved, or whole champagne
	    grapes
    1 tablespoon butter
    3/4 cup toasted walnut halves (see below)
    Salt
    
    Dressing:
    1 small garlic clove, minced
    1/2 cup seedless grapes
    1/3 cup dry white wine
    1 teaspoon dry mustard
    1/4 teaspoon white pepper
    1/4 cup walnut oil
    1/2 cup safflower oil
    
    Combine the watercress, cheese, and grapes in a large bowl.
    
    Heat the butter in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add the walnuts
    and saute about 2 minutes.  Place on paper towels and sprinkle lightly
    with salt.
    
    For the dressing, put the garlic, grapes, and white wine in a blender
    and blend on high speed to puree.  Add the dry mustard, pepper,
    walnut oil, and safflower oil.  Blend until smooth.
    
    When ready to serve the salad, stir the dressing briefly and pour
    over the watercress, cheese, and grapes.  Toss to coat.  Divide
    among 6 serving plates and garnish with walnuts.
    
    TOASTED WALNUTS
    
    Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.  Spread the walnut halves out
    on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake them until golden brown and
    slightly brittle, about 20 to 30 minutes.  Cool for 5 minutes. 
    Place the nuts in a wide-mesh sieve and gently rub with a towel
    to loosen the skins.  When cool enough to handle, remove any remaining
    skin with a sharp knife.
    
    							Pat

    
    I shred carrots, usually 2 per person, add about 1/4 as much raisins
    as I have carrots, and mix in just enough yogurt so it clumps together,
    but not enough that it is mushy, sweeten it with a little honey
    and season with cinammon.  My sister does the same thing, only she
    uses mayonaise.
    
    

    This is the recipe for the Leon Chop Salad.  This salad is the
    "signature" item for the prestigous La Scala Restaurant on Sunset
    Blvd. in Hollywood.  It has a great vinegarette dressing. Please
    reply if you give it a try.
    
    *Salad*
    1/2 Head of Head lettuce          1/2 Head Romaine lettuce
    1/3 cup grated Mozzarella Cheese  1 8oz. Can of Garbanzo beans
    1/4 cup salami (cut julienne)
           
    *Dressing*
    1/3 cup Taragon Vinegar           2 Tblsp.s Olive Oil
    1 tsp. Dijon Mustard              1 1/2 tsp. Dry Mustard
    1/2 tsp. lemon juice              2 pinches Parmesan Cheese
    1 Dash Salt                       1 Dash Pepper 
    
    Chop the lettuce quickly with a *sharp* knife to ensure crisp lettuce.
    The lettuce should be thoroughly chopped (smaller than bite size).
    Mix Salad ingredients in a large bowl and refrigerate until serving.
    
    Mix dressing thoroughly. The dressing will yield 1/2 cup.   --This
    will serve two "large" dinner salads or four appetizer salads.
    Greetings from the Golden State.
                                                            

    This salad is also served with either bacon, chopped tomato, or
    turkey.  These items are served on top of the salad.  About 1/2
    cup per item (mix & match) works nicely.  
    
    P.S. Try it with bacon & tomato!

    I made the salad last night.  The lettuce turned out a bit limp,
    maybe because I didn't dry it before putting it in the bowl and
    refrigerating it, or maybe because my knife wasn't very sharp.
    The salad was very good, anyway, the dressing especially--tart
    and mustardy.
    
    I agree, bacon and tomato would be a good addition.
    
    Garbanzo beans are wonderful things.  I used a can of them, as in
    the recipe, but sometimes I soak the dried ones overnight and
    cook them (with some onion, garlic, bay leaf, other herbs), and
    the result is wonderful--much better taste and texture than the
    canned ones have.
    
    Hollywood Chop Salad was a fine meal on a 90-degree evening in
    Massachusetts!
    
    Mary Alice

    Toni,
       TO make Greek salad they way you get it in Greece just use the
    ripest tomatos you can find cut into bite-sized pieces, cucumbers,
    onions, black Greek olives (not the kind in the cans) and Feta cheese.
    Serve with olive oil and red wine vinegar so each person can use
    whatever proportions they like the best. I didn't see many Greek salads
    in Greece with iether lettuce or spinach.
    
    Enjoy!
    Debbie
     

    The El Morocco restaurant (Worcester, MA.) uses a bit of lemon juice
    and a touch of mint in their greek salads.
    
    ...seems like it would compliment the lamb nicely!
    
    Edd

    This is a little late for EAster, but...
    .1 was correct, a salad of cukes, tomatoes, onions, sometimes green
    peppers, feta and black olives is called Horiatiki salata.  A rough
    translation is "country salad".  There is NO LETTUCE in it!  Unfor-
    tunately Greek restaurants in the states have succumbed to American
    ways and use lettuce.  It's much better without it in my opinion
    but of course I am biased.  ;-)  I usually use olive oil, red wine
    vinegar, oregano, garlic, spearmint, thyme and probably some other
    spices that I can't think of right now for my dressing.  I never
    really keep track from time to time - I think the oregano, garlic and 
    spearmint are the most imporant though.  Oh yeah and some pepper. 
    (people can add salt if they like).
    There is another salad served in Greece called lettuce salad (marouli
    in Greek).  It's basically shredded lettuce and onions mixed with
    olive oil and vinegar.  I've never made it myself and haven't been
    to Greece in several years but that's how I remember it.  I've never
    seen this in a Greek cookbook.

This salad has sort of a sweet 'n' sour dressing.  It's a great summery
salad!
 

                            Wilted Lettuce Salad 

                            (Recipe geared for Two)

	LOTS of "leafy" lettuce (not iceberg)

	4 slices of bacon, chopped up
	1 medium onion, chopped
	
	1/3 - 1/2 of the bacon fat
	5-6 Tablespoons of cider vinegar
	2 Tablespoons of brown sugar


	Cook the bacon in a frying pan.  Reserve 1/3 to 1/2 of the
	bacon fat, and dispose of the rest.

	Toss the bacon and chopped onion with the lettuce leaves.

	Just before you're ready to eat, mix the bacon fat,
	cider vinegar, and brown sugar in the frying pan, and
	bring to a boil.  Poor over the bowl of lettuce, while
	someone else mixes the dressing in.  The lettuce will
	wilt as the dressing is poored.  According to my in-laws,
	if you start getting a melt-down, stop pooring the dressing,
	and just toss what you have.

	It's important not to combine the vinegar, fat, and brown
	sugar until you're ready to boil it.  Otherwise, the dressing
	won't taste right.

No - not a joke, nor a play on words. This started as a recipe from an
Australian cookbook, and is for a salad that is both hot (temperature wise)
and hot (spicy wise).

The ingredients in column 'A' are from the book, those in column 'B' are
our variant. In fairness I haven't tried the base recipe, but I did enjoy
my wife's experiment.

	A		B		Ingredient

salad

	2 cups		2 cups		coarsely shredded white cabbage
	2 cups		2 cups		coarsely shredded red cabbage
	1		1		large onion cut into 1/4" rounds
	1		1		red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
			6		'scotch bonnet' peppers chopped

	2 T		2 T		olive oil

dressing

	60 cc		60 cc		white vinegar
	60 cc		60 cc		olive oil (less above 2T)
	1/2 t		3 T		sambal oelek
	1 clove		3 cloves	garlic, crushed
	1 t		1 t		fresh parsley
			1 T		chopped coriander

Method

Prepare the dressing, setting aside 2 tablespoons of oil.

Lightly stir fry the salad vegetables in a fairly hot wok for no more than 1 
minute, and certainly not enough to 'wilt' them.

Add the dressing and stir fry over low heat until the dressing is combined.

serves 6 as a conventional salad side dish,
serves 2 as a main course.

Warning: scotch bonnet peppers are very hot, though the cooking moderates this 
a little. Handle with care, and only use this amount if you know you like it
spicy.

Note 60cc is almost 1/4 cup (australian cup is 250 cc ~= 5/4 US cup)

/. Ian .\

    I'm getting married September 1st, and we're having the reception
    (about 100 guests) at our house.  I am getting the deli platters, potatoe 
    salad and pasta salad from Shaws in Milford.  But, I will need to make my 
    own Garden salad and fruit salad.
    
    What I was wondering is...does anybody know how many heads of lettuce I
    will need to make the Garden salad (at first I thought I would need it
    to serve 100, but somebody mentioned that with all the other salads, I
    probably only need it to serve 30 or so).  I figured I could kinda
    guess on the other stuff.
    
    Oh...How far in advance do you think I could make the garden salad and
    the fruit salad.  The wedding is at 1:00, and I was kinda hoping to be
    able to make the the night before.
    
    	Robin 

    Garden salad holds up well in stainless steel.  In plastic, it tends to
    get wilty fast.  Another tip - don't put your tomatos in.  Hold off til
    you're ready to serve if you can.  Just cut them all up but store
    separately.
    
    Don't know about the fruit salad.  I would imagine the same thing. 
    Stainless steel stores things much better than plastic; perhaps it gets
    and stays colder?
    
    rgds
    marcia

You could do things a lot farther in advance than that.

Fruit salads benefit from sitting a bit to get the juices going.  But not too
far or the fruit chunks will get too soft.

The garden salad could be prepared in stages.  Chop the onions, celery, carrots,
cukes, etc. a couple of days early and seal them in individual plastic bags in
the fridge.  The day before you can wash and tear up the lettuce, and put it in
a pillow case in the vegetable crisper.  (Yes, a pillow case!)  The final mixing
can be done at the last minute.  Or, you could even have things put out salad 
bar style.

    When I worked (many years ago) for a hotel restaurant on their Salad
    bar.. They used to figure 1 head of lettuce for every 10 people. 
    Unless this is going to be a sit-down affair, be sure to tear your
    lettuce small, is makes it easier to eat.  Yes, use the pillow case, we
    used to use big cheesecloth bags and did cases of lettuce at a time,
    and pulled out what we needed as the time went by, sometimes, the
    lettuce would last us 2 or 3 days, and it always looked fresh.  To
    remove the core, completely... Hit it hard on your counter, and the
    core pops right out...NEVER, NEVER, NEVER use a knife, as the oxides
    from the metal will affect the lettuce and turn it brown, no matter how
    carefully you care for it.
    
    Bon

    Mexican Salad
    
    2 servings; can be doubled or tripled
    
    1 orange, peeled and diced
    1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
    1/2 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced
    1/3 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
    2 tablespoons minced red onion
    3 tablespoons olive oil
    1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
    salt and freshly ground pepper
    1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro
    Red leaf lettuce
    
    Combine first 5 ingredients in medium bowl.  Using fork, gradually mix
    oil into lime juice in small bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add
    to salad with cilantro and mix.  Line plates with lettuce.  Mound salad
    on lettuce.
    

    What I do is make layers of whatever I have - lettuce, carrots,
    mushrooms, peas, tomatoes, cheese, radish, celery, shrimp, etc - 
    anything you like.
    
    Layer everything in a bowl and spread mayonaise evenly over the top.
    Sprinkle with a couple teaspoons of sugar, then sprinkle, generously,
    with parmesan cheese. Cover the whole thing with plastic wrap and
    refrigerate overnight. Kind of toss it all together as you service it
    to get a little of each layer and some of the dressing.
    
    NancyS

Seven Layer Salad:
    
    In our family it is made with:-
    1.  torn spinach leaves
    2.  cheese, cubed
    3.  tomatoes, sliced
    4.  cucumbers, sliced
    5.  mushrooms, sliced
    6.  carrot, grated
    7.  thawed (uncooked) frozen peas

    Cover the whole salad with made up Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing, cover
    and refrigerate for at least 6 hours (but not more than overnight!)

    I've done lots of variations on this - sometimes used bean sprouts, a
    layer of chic peas, scallions in place of onions, sliced apples,
    walnuts, etc etc.. but the above is the basic one our family has 
    always called 7 layer salad.

    ps.  If you have a deep, clear bowl it shows off the salad best.

    gailann

    Another variation
    
    1. torn spinach leaves
    2. lettuce leaves
    3. chopped onion
    4. cheddar cheese cubed.
    5. frozen peas one box un-thawed
    6. crumbled bacon
    7. 1/2 cup mayo 1/2 cup sour cream mixed together.
       layer on top of salad 
    

    Another variation, I believe I remember all the proportions:
    
    Peasant Salad
    
    Place ingredients into a large (like the large covered tupper salad
    bowl) salad bowl in the order they appear.
    
    1 head iceburg lettuce, torn
    1/2 cup chopped celery (mixed with lettuce)
    1 med green pepper chopped
    8 oz torn spinach leaves
    2 med re onions chopped (can be very strong, may want to cut back)
    10 oz package frozen peas still frozen
    1 tbsp sugar
    1 tsp white pepper
    6 hardboiled eggs, sliced
    8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
    1/2 cup crumbled bacon
    16 oz jar miracle whip (spooned in dolops over top)
    
    Cover and let sit over night.  When ready to serve, toss all
    ingredients together.  This recipe feeds a crowd, but can be divided.
    
    Chris

    
    It's been awhile since I've posted anything resembling a recipe, so
    here's a real simple one.  With the crop of cukes and cherry tomatoes
    we've been getting, we end up eating this all the time. It's really one
    of my favorites.
    
    1-2 cucumbers - peel them, then cut them lengthwise in half. Scoop out
                    the seeds, then slice them into 1/4" or 1/2" slices.
    
    1 dozen (or as many as you like, we use a lot) fresh cherry tomatoes
                    cut in halves.  You can use other types of tomatoes
                    sliced and cut, however the cherry tomatoes are the 
    	            best for this.
    
    Mix them together in a bowl, and use your favorite salad dressing. 
    We've been using Ken's Lite Caesar dressing lately and it tastes
    great on this salad.  Simple but tasty, and quick to prepare.
    
    Larry

Had this last week, absolutely delicious!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
			Bok Choy Salad

Dressing:	3/4 cup vegetable oil (or olive oil)
		1/4 cup red wine vinegar
		scant 1/2 cup sugar
		2 TBLSP soy sauce

Combine all ingredients in a Jar and shake well to blend. Chill
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Greens:		1 large head of Bok Choy, coarsely chopped, no greens
		4 green onions, sliced (scallions)

Toss ingredients in a large salad bowl and chill until ready to dress.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Crunch:		1/2 cup butter or Margarine
		2 TBLSP sugar
		1/2 cup sesame seeds
		1 (3oz) pkg slivered almonds
		2 pkgs Raman Noodles, Crushed and uncooked

Saute all ingredients in the melted butter (or Margarine) over low heat, in a
large skillet. Stir constantly until browned. Cool the mixture and sprinkle
over the salad just prior to pouring on the dressing.

    Since this is a general SALAD topic, I thought I'd ask my question
    here.
    
    The grocery/produce markets now sell "SALAD MIXES".   The only brand
    name that I can't think of right now is the "Dole Classic Salad"
    mixture.    In general, these aren't bad for a quick salad fix. But,
    there does seem to be some type of after taste which might be some type
    of preservative.   The list of ingrediants on the bag, of course, do
    not list any preservatives.   Any idea what this strange after-taste
    might be?     Just curious......
    
    Sarah

	Thanks Sarah, I've been going crazy, because I can taste it too.  It
tastes like some kind of sulfite to me, which is used for keeping lettuce
fresh at many salad bars.  Maybe there are non added but the produce is washed
in it?

	To me, Doles has the least taste.  Fresh Express (I think this is the
name) tastes absolutely putrid to me, but nobody else I know tastes it.
It's the same stuff Burger King has on it's lettuce, and the same taste the
lettuce at Ponderosa has.  

	Laura

    I can't say that I've noticed an after taste, but maybe I have.  To me,
    they taste like they're on the verge of going bad.
    
    I've noticed that same taste on salads from fast food places.

Thanks for the warnings. With the price of iceberg being sky high and
the quality being rockbottom, I was about to try some of the salad
mix soon, but I guess I'll forego the plan, now.

(When I was a kid and my Dad would occasionally buy the salad mix, we
 used to ask him if he'd been doing cleanup duty in the produce
 department. :^)

    A few weeks ago I was watching 5 minutes or so of one of the many
    scientific interest shows on CNN.  They talked about the packaged
    lettuce, salads, etc.  From what I remember the *food* does not have
    any  preservatives -- this is all a new type of packaging that keeps
    food fresh much longer ... etc.  On each salad package there is an
    expiration date, and just like milk I wouldn't buy it to close to that
    date.  
    
    There is, however, some preservatives that are used to coat some, but
    not all, of the inside of the package.  I really didn't pay much
    attention.  If there are peservatives in the food it has to say so as
    an ingredient ... but this may be a loop hole.
    
    I buy, and love, the Cesar salad mix -- haven't had a bad one yet!

    I agree with the noter who mentioned the stronger taste with Fresh
    Express (or whatever it's called).  I prefer Dole, and will pick it up
    for quick lunches.  Clearly, Laura, you're not the only one who tastes
    it! ;-)  --S

    Well, I certainly am glad that I wasn't the only one tasting it.  I
    much prefer making my own salad with fresh lettuce (especially
    Romaine).  But, as someone already mentioned, the prices and quality of
    lettuce in the markets these days are terrible.   I started some
    lettuce seeds this weekend, so hopefully, soon I will have an
    alternative method of getting fresh salad greens.......
    
    Sarah

    I have had good luck with the "european" mixes, leaf lettuces, radicio,
    and endive.  Since these are all fairly stronly flavored greens to
    begin with, I haven't notices much of a "taste", but I also wash the
    greens before I use them.
    
    meg

    
    Uncle Louie's is the name that my wife and I gave this salad because 
    it we had it when we visited my wife's relatives on the New Jersey 
    shore.  They are real Italian.
    
    3 Tomatoes
    1 green pepper
    1 red pepper
    1 large onion (vedialia preferred)
    1 cucumber
    1 small bunch of celery
    2 table spoons chopped garlic
    1 table spoon of mixed Italian herbs/spices (oregano,basil,thime,etc)
    1 teaspoon pepper
    1 table spoon salt
    Olive Oil
    Red Wine Vinigar
    
    chop all vegatables into 1/2 to 3/4 chunks and place in medium-large 
      bowl.
    add garlic and herbs/spices, salt & pepper.
    add equal parts of olive oil and red wine vinigar to just about cover
      the mixture.
    Mix well and chill.
    
    Serve in small salad bowls.  Goes great with any meal.  I enjoy it with
    Italian Garlic Bread.
    
    

    
    Grilled Italian Summer Bread Salad
    Prep:  30 minutes
    Marinate:  20 minutes
    Cook:  3-5 minutes
    Serves:  8
    
    NOTE:  Best if made with day old italian bread  
    
    1/2 cup red wine vinegar
    1/2 t salt
    1/8 t pepper
    1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
    4 large, ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced
    1 cup shredded or coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
    1 lb italian bread, sliced into 1/2 inch thick slices
    1/4 garlic oil (see below)
    1 large cucumber, seeded and thinly sliced
    1 large red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
    
    Prepare a hot fire.  In a large salad bowl, combine vinegar, salt,
    pepper and olive oil.  Stir in tomatoes and basil and set aside.
    
    Toast bread slices over hot coals, turning until both sides are golden
    brown.  Brush one side of each slice with Garlic Oil and set aside,
    uncovered, to cool to room temperature.
    
    Using your hands, break or tear bread slices into pieces about 3/4 inch
    square.
    
    Toss bread cubes, cucumber, and red onion with tomato-basil mixture. 
    Cover with plastic wrap and mairinate at room temperature at least 20
    minutes, or as long as 4 hours.  Bread will soften as it absorbs
    flavors in salad.
    
    Garlic Oil:
    Prep:  10 minutes
    Marinate:  48 hours
    Cook:  none
    Makes:  2 cups
    
    10 to 12 large garlic cloves
    2 cups olive or vegetable oil
    
    Crush garlic cloves with the side of a cleaver or a knife and remove
    paper skin.  Put parlic in a clean glass jar or a bottle with a narrow
    neck and pour in olive oil.  Cover with a tight fitting lid or cork.
    
    Let oil and garlic stand for at least 48 hours at room temperature
    before using.  Store in a cool place.  As long as the garlic is covered
    with oil, it will not spoil.  (Please don't get into the "yes it will
    spoil" rathole because I know that its covered elsewhere.) :^)
    
    
    If anyone tries this, please let me know how it is.  Sounds like
    something we used to make while I was growing up but we never put the
    fresh basil in.
    
    Cheers,
    cj