NYC: Our Salad

I'm not much of a "salad" eater, but this I love. When cooking for one, I typically prepare pasta, rice, carb-heavy dishes for myself. Sausages and rigatoni, tomato sauce. Rice, eggs, and spam. Fried potatoes with lots of pepper, eggs and pesto. My diet was certainly vegetable and fruit deficient!

But the first time Monsieur P and I cooked together he made me this salad. It was so good we made it again the following night. And again, and again. And since then, I've adapted this staple as my own. It's simple to prepare and utterly delicious.

We buy all the ingredients from the Greenmarket and Whole Foods. The fruits and cheese can be changed/substituted, but the only thing that MUST stay are the cornichons. The salad is not the same without those tart, crisp bites. I get these by the pound and often snack on them for breakfast - nothing like a pucker to wake you up in the mornings.

Here what goes in the salad. Chop, toss and eat.

- 1 bunch red leaf lettuce
- 1 avocado
- 2 small tomatoes
- 1 pear, peach or nectarine
- A dozen or so cornichons
- Crumbled blue cheese or feta, a generous handful
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar

Pretty straightforward right? I wash the lettuce first. While it dries, I chop up the avocado, tomatoes, and the fruit (we've been using nectarines recently). Then I mix in all in a bowl, adding in the blue cheese or feta (sometimes BOTH ;), and the cornichons. Add olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and give it a light toss. All pau!

[Note: we always eat the salad with another dish on the side. Tonight it was mac and cheese with crumbled sausage, hehehe.]