I want to tell you about my favorite lunch. It isn’t the same thing each time, but is more variations on a theme depending on what I have. But it always starts the same – mixed salad greens.
I go out to the garden, pick a big handful of fresh lettuce, rinse and dry the leaves, and tear them into a big bowl. I drizzle olive oil and a vinegar (usually red wine, sometime white or champagne), grind some fresh salt and pepper, and toss it all up. Now here is where the variations come in.
Leftover grilled chicken? Slice it up. Goat or feta cheese? Perfect. Carrots, celery, cucumber, tomato, avocado, berries, beets…? Pick and choose. One of my favorite combinations is cilantro, avocado, blackberries (or mandarin oranges in winter), and goat cheese. Or what about lentils, roasted red peppers, and feta cheese?
For this particular salad, I pulled up a bunch of golden beets. After a quick steam in the microwave, I peeled and sliced them into the salad, and tossed it all with red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt/pepper. I topped it off with a crumble of goat cheese and mixed it up a bit. And that’s it – my favorite lunch salad!
