Apple-Walnut Salad

With Patricia Altomare

More than any other side dish, salad allows the flavors of each season to shine through. Some of the salads made today can be as impressive as a fancy entrée’. I am one of those people who have been stuck in a rut for years when it comes to salads. It would inevitably be just lettuce, tomatoes, cukes, and occasionally a green pepper or red onion thrown in for color. That has all changed. I now go out of the box. Adding different ingredients like any kind of nut, cubes of a flavorful cheese, and all kinds of fruit, has made me look at salads in a much different way from my usual. I enjoy many different kinds of salads now; and with ingredients such as lentils, roasted beets, and fennel, just to name a few. Some people know this as “Wedding Salad” as it was first enjoyed at a wedding a few years ago, and apparently that is what it ended up being called. Guests were impressed with the combination of simplicity, only 4 ingredients, and how delicious it was. I have been making it often ever since, and have passed the recipe on to many, many people.

Ingredients

For dressing:
½ cup sour cream
½ cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon tarragon leaves, rubbed (When adding, rub between your fingers to release oils) For salad: 1 green apple1/4 cup dried cranberries¼ cup chopped walnutswhole lettuce

Instructions

1. Blend all ingredients well. Chill at least 2 hours before serving. Refrigerate in a tightly covered container up to 2 weeks.
2. Make salad and drizzle dressing to taste.
Note: You may also want to try some of the following combinations
- Apples, celery, chopped walnuts
- Sliced bananas and pineapple chunks
- Chicken chunks, celery, and seedless grapes
(Recipe courtesy of Pat Altomare, Pat’s Kitchen, Eagle-Tribune, 2010.)

Food Columnist, Eagle-Tribune Pat writes the weekly food column, “Pat’s Kitchen.” The focus is on home cooking and family recipes. According to Pat, the column is “not just cooking and recipes. It’s become personal between the readers and myself and I try to make it informative and interactive.”