My husband has an uncle who's a chef. And Uncle Chef lives nearby. I'm a lucky girl.
Uncle Chef makes a mean salad. I know, I know, how hard can a salad be? Well, he has some sort of lettuce-drying process that I can't figure out, but he insists it helps the dressing stick to the lettuce. And of course, he manages to cut things so that they display well, whereas in my world, if the salad lands on the plate, well, that's presentation. Additionally, he'll even personalize the salads, if, say, you don't like tomatoes, he'll leave them off. Yes, he actually hand-plates everyone's salad. I, on the other hand, dump all the veggies in a bowl and everyone is expected to fend for themselves.
Still, Uncle Chef seems to like me.
We hosted Christmas dinner at my house. Uncle Chef asked what he could bring. Without hesitation, I said Salad! And then I promptly reminded him that my sister has celiac disease (to which he says "I KNOW what your sister can eat!!"). He ended up bringing a Gorgonzola cheese to put on the salad, so I took him aside and asked that he make Sis's salad separately...Gorgonzola is in the bleu cheese family, and something in the process involves flour. Again, Uncle Chef says "I KNOW what your sister can eat!!" His plan, all along, was to have the cheese on the side for people to decided how much, if any, they wanted. I have to remember that a) Uncle Chef takes food allergies very seriously, and b) he also seems to like my sister.
Uncle Chef makes his own salad dressing (of course he does). And the salad dressing MAKES the salad (and anything else you want to dump it on). He showed my husband how to make it this Christmas, and hubby told me yesterday. It's so easy, even I can manage it:
Mix equal parts balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
Add minced garlic and Dijon mustard to taste.
Add salt and pepper, to taste, if you must (but I don't).
Mix really, really well.
It is sooooo good! Last night I put it on steamed broccoli, and then I inhaled the broccoli. I don't like vegetables. But the dressing is so good, it might even make peas bearable.
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