Salads and Salad Greens

I really love salads, especially when I can use greens fresh from my garden. I'll have to wait a few months for that, but luckily greens are available in the markets all year.


The term "salad" usually refers to a cold or room temperature dish consisting of a variety of chopped or sliced ingredients, usually including at least one raw vegetable or fruit, most often lettuce. Often it is served with a dressing.

A salad may be served before or after the main dish as a separate course, as a main course in itself, or as a side dish. Some salads can also be used as fillings for sandwiches.

Salad is an ancient dish that derives its name from "salum", the Latin word for salt.

The garden lettuce, popular in salads, is thought to be a selected form of the bitter-leaved wild species (Lactuca serriola) found throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The ancient Egyptians are believed to have been the first to cultivate it.

During the Middle Ages, salads included many ingredients that would be considered "gourmet" today, such as lovage, Burnet, and sorrel.


Some types of lettuce and other salad greens contain high amounts of beta carotene, folate, vitamin C, calcium, iron, and potassium, but the amounts vary from one variety to another. In general, those with the darkest green leaves or other deeply colored leaves have the most beta carotene, antioxidants and vitamin C. Romaine and Boston lettuce have three times as much vitamin C and much more beta carotene than iceberg lettuce. Greens as arugula, chicory, escarole, mache (corn salad), and watercress are all more nutritious that lettuce. The bitter-tasting greens are often the most nutritious.

Types of Salad Greens

Lettuce:

Lettuces are mild salad greens that are served fresh, either in salads or as garnishes. There are four main categories of lettuce: crisphead lettuce, with leaves that grow in a dense "head," Loose leaf lettuce, with loosely gathered leaves, butterhead lettuce, with tender leaves that form a soft head, and romaine lettuce, with closely packed leaves in an elongated head. There is also a cultivar (cultivated variety) of lettuce, known as stem lettuce, also called celtuce, asparagus lettuce and Chinese lettuce.

Butterhead lettuce:

Butterhead lettuces, sometimes referred to as cabbage lettuce, include varieties such as Boston and Bibb lettuce. The leaves are thin and soft with a silky, almost buttery feel. They have a sweet, mild flavor with less prominent veins than iceberg. Butterhead lettuces are "loose" head lettuces.

Bibb lettuce is also called limestone lettuce. This butterhead lettuce has delicate, loose leaves and lots of flavor. Bibb lettuce has a head the size of a naval orange and slightly elongated. The small, stiffly curled leaves have mild, faintly bitter taste, and a tender crunch. Bibb lettuce is relatively scarce and expensive in most markets.

Boston lettuce is a type of butterhead lettuce, with soft, tender leaves. It goes well in salads and sandwiches, or the leaves can be used as a bed for other dishes.


Crisphead Lettuce:

Crisphead lettuces are the crunchy ones. Iceberg is the most popular variety. Other varieties of Crispheads include Avoncrisp, Malika, Premier Great Lakes, Saladin, and Webb's Wonderful.

Iceberg lettuce, also called head lettuce, cabbage lettuce or crisphead lettuce, is a favorite American lettuce because of crunch it brings to salads and it keeps well, but it's short on flavor and nutrients. Iceberg lettuce has a bland taste and a wet texture.

Looseleaf lettuce:

Looseleaf lettuces are sometimes called "cutting", "bunching", or "curled" lettuces because they do not form a head. The leaves grow in loose bunches on a stalk.

Loose leaf lettuce comes in many varieties. Some have small, flat leaves, some have crinkly, red, green or golden leaves. They have delicate, fresh flavors, and tender textures.

Some varieties are: Oak leaf, Grand Rapids (crinkled pale green leaves with bronze-green to crimson edges), Ruby (crinkled and pale green with deep red tints), Salad Bowl (one of the first leaf lettuces, having masses of green, deeply lobed leaves that are crisp but tender), and the elongated Deer Tongue. Their flavors range from mild to sweet to woody. The Italian varieties Lollo Rosso (red lollo) and Lollo Biondo (green lollo) taste pleasantly strong and nutty and a little bitter.

Oakleaf lettuce has crunchy stems and tender leaves. There are red and green varieties.

Red leaf and green leaf lettuces are the most common leaf lettuces, and both have curly, ruffled leaves.

Mache ,also called corn salad, lamb's lettuce, lamb's tongue, field lettuce, field salad, or fetticus has tender leaves and a very mild flavor. It is sold in small bunches. The leaves are a good source of beta carotene, Vitamin C, and folate. The leaves are a bright green and rounded with a slightly nutty taste, and is usually eaten raw as a salad green. Mache is highly perishable, and is often referred to as lamb's lettuce or field salad. The leaves have a silky, almost velvety feel, mild taste and are usually sold with their roots attached. This specialty lettuce is relatively difficult to find, and therefore on the expensive side.

Romaine lettuce:

Romaine, also called Cos lettuce, has long, spear-shaped , dark green, upright outer leaves and often a white central spine. The center leaves become smaller and more yellow. The outer leaves are sturdy, while the inner leaves, are more tender. Romaine lettuce grows upright to a height of about sixteen inches and has elongated leaves with rounded tips. Romaine is crunchy. The flavor is pleasantly nutty, with a touch of bitterness.

This type of lettuce has a good shelf life in the refrigerator.

Green romaine is the most common variety, but you can sometimes find the more tender red romaine.

Romaine has a strong texture which stands up to cooking better than any other lettuce, and because of its curly leaves, it requires extra washing.

Romaine is the most nutritious of the lettuces and a good source of folate, vitamins A and C, calcium, iron, and potassium. Leaves with the darkest green will have more nutrients than the paler ones. Paler leaves are mostly traces of fiber and water rather than nutrients.


Stem Lettuce:

Stem Lettuce is also known as celtuce, asparagus lettuce and Chinese lettuce. The name "celtuce", a combination of "celery" and "lettuce" is given because of its shape, and not because it is a cross between them. Stem Lettuce is a cultivar (cultivated variety) of lettuce grown for its romaine-like foliage and thick, edible stems. The stem grows 6 to 8 inches long and about 1½ inches in diameter.

The stems can be cooked like broccoli and taste like a cross between a mild summer squash and an artichoke. The leaves can be used for salad. Although it has little nutritional value, this lettuce does make a good addition to any fresh salad.

This lettuce is excellent raw or cooked lightly in a stir fry. Young leaves can be cooked as greens.

Other Types of Salad Greens:

Arugula

Arugula, also called rocket, tira, Italian cress, rugola, rugula, roquette, and rucola, looks a little like dandelion greens and watercress. It has a strong, slightly bitter, peppery flavor when raw, and milder peppery flavor when cooked. Use arugula with a mixture of milder salad greens including romaine, baby spinach, radicchio, and mache (corn salad) and a light oil and vinegar dressing. Arugula is great in fruit salads as well as green salads.

Arugula has a high beta-carotene and vitamin C content, and since it is a cruciferous vegetable, it may have cancer prevention properties.

Look for bunches with small to medium bright green leaves, in the 2" to 3" range, as these typically taste the best.

Baby spinach

Baby spinach has small oval, light jade-colored leaves on slender stems, often with roots attached. Unlike mature spinach, the ribs are not prominent. Baby spinach tastes mild, somewhat like grass when raw, and sweeter when cooked.

Belgian endive

Belgian endive, also called French endive, witloof, witloof chicory , chicory (in Britain), Belgium chicory, blanching chicory, Dutch chicory, green-leaved blanching chicory, and chicon, is related to chicory.

Belgian endive has a silken, crunchy texture, and a slightly bitter taste. It has light cream-colored, spear shaped heads with twinges of purple on edges and tips of leaves.. The leaves are often used to make hors d'oeuvres, but they can also be chopped and added to salads, or braised to make an exquisite (and expensive) side dish.

Belgian endive is low on nutrients.

Mixed with other greens, one head of Belgian endive is enough for 4 people.

This green adds spark to tossed salads. Add cut or torn leaves just before serving, because this green discolors quickly. Choose heads that feel firm and show no signs of drying or shriveling. belgian endive is also delicious when cooked.

Chicory

Chicory, also called, curly endive, chicory endive, curly chicory, frisee, and frise is a wild-looking plant with long, whitish ribbed leaves fringed with feathery, spiky points of green. The outer leaves are somewhat bitter, and the pale inner leaves are more tender and mild. Don't confuse this with Belgian endive, which the British call chicory and the French call endive (very confusing!). You can use this crisp, bitter green in salads or cook it as a side dish.


Collards

Collards have long, wide (about eight by five inches at the widest point), firm green leaves with prominent rib in center. This green tastes strong and bitter. Use sparingly, finely chopped, to season other greens. If they are to be used in salads, buy tender, light-green collards.

Collards are high in vitamin A

When buying collards, look for four to eight-leaf bunches that are deep green in color and plump. Avoid those that have turned yellow or look shriveled, wilted, and brown around the edges. They are past their prime and have lost most of their nutritive value.

Purchase about a pound of fresh collards for 2 or 3 servings.

To store collards, put the greens in a plastic bag in the refrigerator where they will keep for several days at 32 degrees F. ( 0 degrees C). When they begin to turn yellow, cut away those portions and use the rest quickly. Yellow collards have lost most of their food value.

Winter harvested collards are delicately sweet and are good in salads. The ribs, as well, are sweet and crunchy. Be sure to include them in the salad along with the leaves. Chop collards into bite size pieces and combine them with romaine and loose leaf lettuces for a salad that offers plenty of nutrition.

You can use collard leaves in a wraps with finely diced vegetables and sprouts, or make a chopped collard salad with fresh corn cut off the cob, chopped tomatoes, chopped sweet onions, raw pistachios, and salt-cured olives.



Curly Cress

Curly Cress, also called garden cress and pepper grass, is a peppery green that is related to broccoli, cabbage, mustard and radish. It is great in salads, sandwiches, and soups, and garnishes. Curly cress is highly perishable, so try to use it as soon as possible after you buy it.

Dandelion Greens

Dandelion greens have a somewhat bitter flavor. Older dandelion greens should be cooked. Younger ones, harvested in the spring before they flower, are less bitter and can be served raw as a salad green. Use only a few in a salad.

Dandelion greens are a good source of vitamin A, vitamin K, and the antioxidant lutein.

Escarole

Escarole , also called Batavian endive, Batavia, or scarole, has sturdy leaves and a slightly bitter flavor. Young escarole leaves are tender enough to add to salads, otherwise escarole is best cooked as a side dish or used in soups. Only the pale inner heart is used for salads.

Mizuna

Mizuna, also called Japanese greens, and spider mustard, has tender leaves and a pleasant, peppery flavor.

Radicchio

Radicchio, also called red chicory, red-leafed chicory, red Italian chicory and chioggia, has a cabbage-like texture, and a bitter taste. The most common variety, radicchio rosso is round, while the treviso radicchio is elongated.

Because of it’s bitterness, use only a small amount in a salad. It tastes good and looks nice when combined with other salad greens.

Radicchio will remain fresh for two to three weeks if kept in closed plastic container in the refrigerator.

Radicchio is good cut in half lengthwise, and brushed with extra virgin olive oil, and grilled until soft and beginning to brown. You can also use the leaves as a base for hors d'oeuvres, or saute them for a side dish.

Sorrel

Sorrel, sometimes called sourgrass, has large, pointed, dark green leaves and a pungent, citrusy flavor. It is hard to find in markets in U.S. markets. Europeans use sorrel as flavoring for cream sauces and as vegetable in its own right. my daughter-in-law, who comes from the Republic of Georgia, made a delicious sorrel soup for me with sorrel from my garden.

Use sorrel sparingly in salads. You can also cook it asyou would cook spinach.


Spinach

Spinach adds color, texture and flavor to salads, but use only small, tender leaves in salads.

Wash spinach to remove any grit.

When buying loose spinach, look for young plants with small leaves and thin smooth stems. As spinach gets larger and more mature, it becomes tougher and stringier. When buying spinach in plastic bags, do not buy if there are signs of softness or sliminess, or yellow leaves visible through the bag.

Frozen spinach is good for stuffings and sauces.

Defrost spinach at room temperature, or thaw by steaming slowly in a few spoonfuls of water in a covered pot. Let it cool and squeeze with hands until it is as dry as you can make it. Chop with a knife. A 10-ounce package of frozen spinach should yield about ½ cup after squeezing and chopping.

To rescue gritty cooked spinach, drop spinach into a kettle of rapidly boiling salted water, return to boil, and let boil hard for 1 minute. Remove pot from heat, and let the spinach stand undisturbed in the water for 2 minutes. Gently skim the spinach from the surface of the water with a strainer. Most of the grit will have sunk to the bottom of the pot.

Mesclun

Mesclun, also called spring salad mix,, field greens, or spring mix, a mix of a variety of young salad greens. Commercial mixes usually include arugula, mizuna, tat soi, frisee, oakleaf, red chard, radicchio, mustard greens, and radicchio.

Tat Soi

Tat soi, also called spoon cabbage, has a spoon-like shape and a peppery flavor. I grew this in my garden last spring, and it was delicious.

Trefoil

Trefoil is named for the three leaves that sprout from each stem. It has a crunchy texture and an aromatic flavor. It's great in salads or as a garnish in soups.


Watercress

Watercress grows in bunches and has a mustard-like, peppery bite. It is a member of the cruciferous vegetable family. It is a popular garnish in salads and sandwiches.

Use watercress alone or mix it with milder greens. It can be added to potato soup, used as a base for cream soup, used it stir fries or cooked like spinach.

Pull off and discard larger stems which are tough and stringy. Watercress wilts quickly, so don’t trim more than an hour before serving.

It is not wise to pick watercress in the wild. Wild watercress may contain parasites and bacteria that may cause intestinal infections.

Be sure to wash commercial watercress thoroughly.

Watercress may cause cystitis in some people and its medicinal use is not advised for those who have a delicate stomach or suffer from acidosis or heartburn. Excessive or prolonged use can lead to kidney problems. Some doctors advise against its use during pregnancy.

Watercress contains substantial amounts of beta carotene, calcium, Vitamins A and C, and antioxidants .

Do not buy wilted watercress, and try to avoid bunches with yellow-tinged leaves. Watercress is available year round, although it flourishes during spring.

To store watercress, remove any yellow leaves and place the bunch of watercress, in a glass of water (as you would flowers) . Cover the bunch loosely with a plastic bag. It should keep for two to five days. Be sure to change the water daily. You may also toss an open bag of watercress in the crisper bin.

Before using, rinse the watercress under cool running water then place on towels and pat dry. Inspect each sprig as you pat it dry; tiny snails often cling to the undersides of leaves. Trim and discard any tough stems. The thinner stems are edible.

Raw watercress is good in first-course salads (drizzled with a simple vinaigrette of lemon and mustard and olive oil), or in sandwiches. Citrus goes well with watercress in salads.

Watercress is good stirred into already mashed potatoes or tossed with pasta and oil.

Watercress should be added to soups during the final minutes of cooking.

Winter Purslane

Winter purslane, also called Cuban spinach, miner's lettuce, and claytonia ,resembles ordinary purslane, only the leaves and stems are smaller and more delicate.









Buying Salad Greens

Select lettuce that has a rich color and crisp, fresh-looking leaves. Lettuce should be fresh and crisp, with good color and no signs of yellowing, decay or slime, blemishes, wilting or rust spots. Look for lettuce with healthy outer leaves, as this is often the most nutritious part of the plant.

Select compact, iceberg lettuce heads with dark green outer leaves.

Look for medium sized heads of Romaine and other leaf lettuce with dark outer leaves that are tightly closed.


Check the sell-by date on packaged greens.

Do not by packaged greens if dark rims and bruises or signs of soggy wilted lettuce such as faded leaves and flattened ribs are visible. Choose packs containing leaves with vibrant colors .

Choose head lettuce by its weight rather than size. Heavy heads will be juicy and crunchy.

When buying loose leaf lettuce, buy the smallest plants. Larger ones are more bitter and tough. Reject plants with leaves that spring from a thick central core, indicating that the plant has "bolted", and will have an off taste

When buying romaine, buy small heads. Large ones have tough, dry, bitter outer leaves.

When buying Belgian endive, select heads with yellow tips; those with green tips are more bitter. Their peak season is the late fall and winter.

Storing Salad Greens

When you get your greens home, blot moisture from the leaves with a paper towel. Place them unwashed, in a plastic bag with holes in it, or in a large paper bag in the crisper of your refrigerator. Store for only two days. After two days, the greens will start to get slimy and smelly. Lettuce keeps crispier as close to 32 degrees as possible, but not below 32 degrees.

Lettuce will turn brown easily if stored close to most other fruits and vegetables due to the ethylene gas given off by many fruits and vegetables.

Iceberg lettuce will keep for 7 to 14 days, Romaine keeps for 6 to 10 days, and butterhead will keep for only 3 or 4 days.


Greens that are to be used within two to three days can be washed and dried before putting them in the refrigerator. Handle them gently so as not to bruise them. Store in a sealed plastic bag or container.

To slide bulky lettuce heads and bunches into plastic bags, turn the bag inside out over your hand, pick up the lettuce in that hand, and pull the bag right-side out over it.
Salad tips

Thump the core of lettuce briskly on the counter and the core will twist out easily.

A salad that accompanies the main course should be interesting, but not so substantial as to upstage the other dishes. Use separate dishes for the salad to keep the dressing from running into other dishes.

A green salad goes well with simple, hearty, informal courses. Green salads do not go as well with complex, delicate main dishes.

The slightly acidic taste of salad dressing and the moist, crunchy texture of salad greens do not go well with cooked vegetables or creamed foods.

Wine and salad do not go well together. The taste of wine is distorted by the flavors of salad greens and vinegar. Serve the salad as a separate course without wine.

A first or main course salad should be especially enticing and should contain in addition to greens and a few vegetables, at least one or two special ingredients such as marinated mushrooms, strips of vegan cheese, olives, etc. Arrange the greens in a bed on a large platter and place the other ingredients on top rather than tossing them together. Pass the salad at the table, and pass around two dressings-one a plain vinaigrette, and the other a creamy dressing.

A salad served after the main course should consist of only greens plus a vinaigrette dressing. Serve with bread or crackers and margarine and soft vegan "cheese".

Allow 6 to 8 cups of torn greens for four persons-one large or two small heads or bunches of greens.

Combine textures and flavors of various greens in a salad-mild with bitter or spicy, crisp with tender, deep green with pale or red. Combine mild greens (Boston or Bibb lettuce, for example) with bitter, pungent (dandelion or chickory-use sparingly), or dry (leaf lettuce) with juicy(endive or romaine), or soft delicate with harder crunchier(escarole).

To rescue wilted greens (that are not yet brown), soak for an hour or more in a large bowl filled with ice water.

To wash greens, place them in a sink or large bowl filled with cool water. Gently swish the greens around in the water. Allow the greens to stand in the water for several minutes so impurities can sink to the bottom. Skim the greens gently from the water with your hands, being careful not to crush or bruise them. If the water seems really dirty, repeat, using fresh water.
Greens must be dried thoroughly or the dressing won’t stick to the leaves.

To dry greens, a spinner is the best. Or the greens can be hand dried. Place greens convex side down in a single layer on a triple thickness of paper towels. Gently blot the leaves with more paper towels.

To dry greens in the refrigerator, put the washed greens in a salad bowl lined with a dish towel or several layers of paper towels and refrigerate for two to three hours. More hand drying may be necessary to complete the drying.

You can place the greens in a clean pillowcase, tie the pillowcase shut and put it in the washing machine on the fast spin cycle for no more that two minutes. I tried this, and it does work. Or, if you have a large amount of greens, place them in the pillow case, go outside, and swung the pillow case in circles. Your neighbors may wonder what you are doing, but this works.

Choosing a Salad Bowl

Glass bowls are attractive because they allow the salad to be seen through the bowl. Bowls made of other materials are good, too, but ever put a salad in a bowl made of unlined copper, aluminum, tin, or cast iron because the acid in the dressing will react with these metals and cause the salad to taste metallic. Wooden salad bowls begin to smell rancid eventually.

Use a bowl which is about half again larger that the volume of the salad greens, to allow room to toss the salad.


Torn greens are considered to be more pleasing to the eye that cut greens. To tear the greens, hold them gently between your finger tips and tear them as you would tear a piece of paper. Tear pieces about two inches across. Pieces larger than that are hard to put into your mouth.

If you are going to cut greens, use a sharp knife to prevent browning at the edges.

Allow about ½ cup of vinaigrette-type dressing or 3/4 cup or more of a creamy dressing for 8 cups of salad (4 servings).

To toss a salad , pour the dressing evenly over the top of the salad, then toss briefly upward as many times as necessary to evenly coat the greens. Never stir the salad as this will bruise the greens.

Serve the salad as soon as it is dressed, or the salt and vinegar will draw the moisture from the greens and they will become limp and soggy.

To save a salad with too much dressing, just toss in more greens.

To add color to your salad, toss in edible flowers such as nasturtium, violets, chive blossoms, or roses.

Salad Dressings

Most of the time, simple oil and vinegar dressings are best. A creamy dressing goes well with a main course salad that contains lots of extras.

Low calorie oil and vinegar dressing: For each 2-cup serving of salad, sprinkle 1 ½ teaspoons olive oil over the salad, toss until the greens are well coated. Add drops of vinegar, salt, and freshly ground pepper to taste, then toss again. Always add the oil first to a salad. If you add the vinegar first, the greens will become wet and the oil will not stick to them.

Vinaigrette Dressing
makes about ½ cup, enough to dress 2 quarts of salad to serve 4

a small clove garlic (Optional)
3/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper, freshly ground
1/8 teaspoon Dijon mustard
4 to 5 teaspoons vinegar
½ cup olive oil

If you are using garlic, peel the garlic, slice thinly into a 1 quart mixing bowl. Add the salt and mash to a smooth paste with a fork.

Add the garlic paste (or just the salt if you are not using the garlic), pepper, mustard, and 4 teaspoons of vinegar. Beat with a fork to blend. Beat in a little oil at a time. Beat until the oil and vinegar mix. Taste and add more vinegar and other seasonings if needed.

If you wish, strain to remove small pieces of garlic.

You may leave the dressing at room temperature for a few hours, covered with plastic wrap.

Add the dressing to the salad just before serving. If the oil and vinegar have separated, beat again with a fork to mix before adding the dressing to the salad.

For Italian dressing, after the oil has been added to the vinaigrette dressing, beat in 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled, and 2 tablespoons very finely minced red bell pepper.




Walnut oil makes a great dressing for bitter greens such as arugula, radicchio, and watercress.

To remove the rib from a leaf of lettuce, fold the leaf in half lengthwise down the center of the rib. Slice or pull the leaf along the edge of the rib, and lift the rib out.

To shred lettuce, remove the ribs and stack the leaves 3 or 4 high. Starting at a long side, roll the stack into a tight cylinders. Slice the roll crosswise. The slices will unravel into tight shreds.

Some Other Salad Ingredients

(There are many more, the possibilities are as endless as your imagination.)

Artichoke hearts can be added to a first or main course salad, but they are too assertive for a salad that accompanies a main dish. Always blot canned artichoke hearts with paper towels before using them.

Avocados add a delicious nut-like taste to salads. Do not cut avocados until just before serving because they discolor easily. Add to the top of an already tossed salad so that the slices remain whole and do not make the rest of the salad slimy.

Shredded cabbage added sparingly adds a pleasant crunch to the salad. Add just before serving because cabbage can develop a stale taste if it sits.

Carrots should be grated or very thinly sliced rather than added to salads in chunks. Chunks are hard to spear with a fork, and awkward to chew.

Celery is an aromatic vegetable and should be used sparingly in a salad. Chop very fine so it will cling to the other vegetables like an herb.

Cooked chickpeas and other legumes are best in first or main course salads. Canned chickpeas are best if drained, rinsed, and marinated for 2 to 24 hours in vinaigrette.

Croutons should be added to the salad at the very last moment before serving. Do not use on salads that are being served with rice, pasta, or potato dishes.

Dried cranberries are good sprinkled on salads.

Cucumbers are best when they are small farm types such as kirbys. If you are using large supermarket type cucumbers, peel them, cut them in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and slice the halves into crescents.

Herbs should be used sparingly so as not to overwhelm the salad. It is best to use only a single herb in a salad. Fresh herbs are preferable to dry. Make sure the herb you are using in the salad goes well with the foods that will be served with or after the salad. Italian meals go well with a salad containing basil or oregano.

Sliced fresh mushrooms wilt and discolor quickly, so add them at the last minute. Marinated mushrooms are best in first and main course salads.

Roasted Nuts are great in salads.

Olives are salty and strong tasting, so they should be used sparingly in salads.

Sweet onions or sliced scallions go well in salads that are served with a simple main course.

Green bell peppers have a pronounced taste, so a small one, cut into rings or strips is enough for a salad to serve four.

Red bell peppers are mild and sweet, and can be added freely to salads.


Roasted and marinated red peppers can be served with or placed on top of salads. Blot roasted and marinated peppers with a paper towel before using.

Pickled hot peppers may be added to a salad as a garnish.

Radishes add a bite to salads. Slice them in very thin rounds.

Sprouts can be overwhelming in a salad, so use them sparingly. They wilt easily, so dress salads that contain sprouts at the very last moment.

Tomatoes are delicious in salads when they are in season. Whole cherry tomatoes are awkward to eat in salads.

Sources:

Grandmother's Food Secrets, by Dr. Myles H. Bader, published by Mylette Enterprises, LLC, Las Vegas NV 89102

Brilliant Food Tips and Cooking Tips, by David Joachim, published by Rodale

The Essential Vegetarian Cook Book, by Diana Shaw, published by Clarkson Potter Publishers

World Vegetarian, by Madhur Jeffrey, published by Clarkson Potter Publishers, New York

Foods that Harm, Foods that Heal, an A to Z Guide to safe and healthy Eating, Published by the readers digest Association, Inc., 1997

The Kitchen Companion, by Polly Clingerman, published by the American Cooking Guild, Gaithersburg, Maryland

Master Recipes, a New Approach to the Fundamentals of Good Cooking, by Stephen Schmidt, published by Clearlight Publishers

www.tonytantillo.com/vegetables/saladgreens

www.foodsubs.com/Greensld

www.simonthescribe.co.uk/wildwatercresssoup

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A17271-2004Mar23

www.innvista.com/health/foods/vegetables/lettuce

www.vegparadise.com/highestperch55