Wine Country Salads

My parents came to visit directly after Alex and Dan left--literally hours later. Good thing we LOVE company! But, poor Adam had to go to wine country twice in three days. We normally bring an assortment of breads, cheese, and fruit with us for a picnic, but we decided to give Adam a bit of a break from the bread and cheese meal and make various salads. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of them (I wonder why), but trust me, these are salads you will definitely want to make for any picnic.


Greek Egg Salad (Moosewood Restaurant: New Classics)

8 eggs
4 cups cold water
1 1/2 Tbs. pitted, chopped kalamata olives (about 6 olives)
3 Tbs. chopped walnuts, toasted
1 1/2 Tbs. chopped fresh dill
1/4 cup prepared mayonnaise
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt, or to taste

1. Bring the eggs and water to a boil in a covered 2-quart saucepan. Reduce the heat to a rapid simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
2. While the eggs cook, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Submerge the cooked eggs in cold water and crack the shells to facilitate peeling. As soon as the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel them and transfer to a large bowl.
3. Mash the eggs well with a potato masher or fork. Add the remaining ingredients (except the salt and pepper, if you want to add them to taste). Stir everything gently to combine and serve.


Marinated Sweet Potatoes and Broccoli (The New Moosewood Cookbook)

If you have leftover salad, have no fear! Just place the salad on a baking tray, trying to leave most of the marinade in the bowl. Roast it in a 350 oven for 40 minutes or until perfectly chewy and caramelized. The roasted salad is wonderful on its own, cold or hot, or in a quesadilla with cheddar cheese.

3 medium-sized sweet potatoes or yams (1 1/2 to 2 lbs.)

Marinade
1/2 cup walnut oil (if unavailable, use olive oil)
1 large clove garlic, minced
3 Tbs. lemon juice
2 Tbs. raspberry vinegar (if unavailable, use red wine vinegar)
1 to 1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. dry mustard [didn't have any, so used Dijon mustard]
1 Tbs. honey
freshly ground black pepper

1 large bunch broccoli (1 to 1 1/2 lbs.), cut into small spears

Optional Garnishes
thin slices of green apple
chopped, toasted pecans [we only used the pecans]

1. Peel the sweet potatoes, cut them in halves or quarters, then into thin slices. Put them up to cook, either in or over boiling water (in a steamer). Meanwhile, prepare the marinade.
2. Combine the marinade ingredients in a medium-large bowl. As soon as the sweet potato slices are tender, add them, still hot to the marinade. Mix gently.
3. Steam the broccoli until bright green and just tender. Rinse until cold running water and drain completely. Lay the broccoli spears carefully on top of the salad. Cover tightly and marinate for several hours.
4. Within 15 minutes of serving, mix in the broccoli from on top. Serve garnished with thin slices of green apple and chopped, toasted pecans.


Chilled Asparagus in Dilled Mustard Sauce (The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest)

My dad had the leftovers of this salad for breakfast in an eggs-florentine type way. He toasted some bread, placed the asparagus on top, and then topped that with a fried egg and the remaining sauce. Let me say, I wish there had been more leftovers so that I could have had one too!

1 lb. asparagus (as thin as possible)
1 cup firm yogurt
1/4 cup mayonnaise (optional) [We didn't use, and it wasn't missed!]
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
2 Tbs. minced fresh dill
2 Tbs. minced fresh chives
salt to taste (optional)
fresh black pepper to taste

1. Snap off and discard the tough bottom ends of your elegantly thin asparagus.
2. Steam the spears over boiling water until just tender. Remove them immediately from the heat, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. (At this point, you can leave them at room temperature or chill until serving time.)
3. In a small bowl, combine yogurt, optional mayonnaise, mustard, and herbs, and whisk until smooth. Season to taste with salt (or not).
4. To serve, arrange the asparagus in a shallow dish, drizzle on the dressing, and grind some fresh black pepper over the top. That's it!