I was looking for a light salad to go with our Easter dinner, and ended up just deciding to toss some spring greens with these croutons and dressing.  I usually just toss croutons with some herbs and olive oil, but I liked infusing the oil for this and will do it again.  As a side note, next time I will skip the parm – the croutons didn’t need it, but you should give it a try to see if you like it.  I think next time I would just dress the salad with a bit of parm.  The dressing itself was very tangy…I do not generally care for salad dressing, but I really liked this vinaigrette!

Recipe!

I was looking for a mayo-less potato salad…I’m not a huge fan of taters in the first place, and mayo salads even less.  Though I do recognize that many people are fans of both ;), I didn’t feel like a salad of that type went with our Memorial Day cookout menu.  I found this on Chowhound, and was very pleased with it – even I ate a serving!  It has done well leftover too, and is even more flavorful.  The only thing I did differently from the original recipe was that I served this cold, and the general consensus preferred it that way as well.

Recipe!

Not really a recipe, but a good starting point for a great summer side salad.  We served this at our Memorial Day cookout, and I also frequently use it as a quick side with grilled meats.  Especially delicious with fresh basil!

Combine sliced tomatoes, basil, parsley, a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and a pinch of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and gently toss.  That’s it!  Alter to taste.

Great side salad that you can adjust however you like.  I’ve used walnuts, hazelnuts, cranberries, goat cheese, feta, etc.  I do prefer that the oil used in the dressing go with the nuts, but you could play with that as well.

Recipe!