I’ve always loved salads. As I’ve gotten older the types of salads I like has changed. Before my favorites were Caesar, Chef, and Cobb Salad, all salads loaded with meats, vegetables and salad dressings. Nowadays I prefer lighter salads. Instead of all the meat, bacon or cold cuts I prefer a few slices of cured ham or none at all. Instead of extra vegetables I now love to add fruits. When it comes to cheese I prefer a light sprinkling usually of goat cheese. As for the dressing most times I opt for s simple drizzle of olive oil or a vinaigrette.
Another thing I’ve really come to love in my salads is nuts. Nuts add a crunch and another great flavor to salads. In today’s recipe I used the Hot & Spicy pecans from Amelia’s Spicing Pecans. You may remember last week I told you all about the scrumptious pecans gift Mike sent me. If you missed it make sure you check it out and order yourself some pecans.
I don’t have much of a recipe for you as this is a very simple salad, simple but fantastic tasting. I used baby spinach, juicy blackberries, a few slices of smoky Czech cured ham (which doesn’t have the outer ring of fat), sprinkled some tart red pepper coated goat cheese, and lastly Hot & Spicy pecans from Amelia’s Spicing Pecans. For the dressing I used extra virgin olive oil. I can’t tell you how well the Hot & Spicy pecans help bring all the flavors together. They added crunch, and a good dose of spicniess to the salad. These pecans have become my favorite toppings on everything, they are just perfect! Thanks again Mike.
In addition to the salad I want to share June’s edition of Taste From The Past.
– Sumptuous Fried Eggplant
– Tartelettes Aux-Fruit (No-Bake) Summer Tarts
– Mandarin Miso Salmon Medallions
– Calabacitas con Maiz or Mexican Zucchini with Corn
– Homemade Almond Milk (Raw)
– Downward Facing Dog and Pain Perdu
– Pork with Green Chiles (Part Mexican Part Czech, CzechXican)
– Emeril’s Crab Cakes with Avocado Emulsion
– Zemlovka, Czecho-Slovakian Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding
– Agua de Sandia – Mexican Watermelon Water
– Homemade French Salad Dressing, The American Kind
Enjoy and I hope you have a great week ahead!
A wonderful salad! So original and tasty.
Love roundup too.
Happy Monday!
Cheers,
Rosa
Thank you Rosa! Hope you’re having a great week.
Nancy…I love nuts in my salad too…so healthy and yours looks really mouthwatering and great presentation ! Have a nice day !
Thanks Elin and I hope you have a great day too.
Lovely salad. Just the sort of ingredients I love in a salad: fruit, nut and cheese. Delish!
Hi Adora,
Thank you!
This is my kind of salad, simple flavors that melt together. The only dressing we use in our house is oil & vinegar/lemon. And I love your look to the past – beautiful food!
Hi Laura,
Thanks! So we agree on the dressings.
Wow! There isn’t a component I don’t like in this salad! The flavors really compliment one another. Thanks for sharing. Buzzed ya!
Thank you Ky:)
Love the concoction with different textures, colours and the sugar and spice and all things… fabulous.
Thank you Jill!
I hardly ever make a salad without nuts! This salad sounds great – and love all the recipes from the past too =)
I’m finding it hard not to include them in my salads. Thank you Peggy!
Lovely salad. Loved the blue platter :)
Thank you Nandita!
Yes to the nuts, no to the fruit. I don’t like mixing fruits with savory but that’s just me. For example, I love raisins but if they are in a curry, I pick them all out and discard them. Strange, I know.
Love the round up.
Hi Suzanne,
Too bad you don’t like the fruits with savory. I used to feel the same way but now can’t get enough. Though raisins are another thing, I don’t like them and also pick them out of food. Thanks!
I love adding fruits to mix with savory ingredients in salads. What a lovely presentation and fabulous photos, as always.
Hi Victoria,
Great to hear it. Thank you!
Fantastic round up. I love getting to see some of your past dishes.
Thank you Ramona:)
mm i love the combination of fruit and prosciutto…so tasty. nothing like a salad in the summer.
Hi Anna,
It just goes together so well. Thanks!
Your blackberries are huge! It looks delicious with pecans. We don’t put nuts on salad enough. I know it’s good for us and simple additional nutrition so I should include nuts more in our salad. I always enjoy the monthly feature as I’ve missed your earlier posts!
Hi Nami,
I know right, that’s why I bought them:) Thanks!
A salad special to me because I would not have thought of putting blackberries into the mix. Can taste them on my palate now, together with the nuts and the rest . . . What an interesting idea – I can see myself tweaking other salad recipes as well :) !
Hi Eha,
The blackberries went really well with all the other ingredients. Yes, it’s fun tweaking salads to add new ingredients like nuts and berries or fruit. Thanks!
Your salad looks just perfect to me! The juicy blackberries are drawing me in to your salad and remind me of how much I enjoy berries in a salad. I find them very satisfying especially during their too short of a season -we should be adding them to everything;-)
Hi Patty,
Thank you! I wish berries had a longer season so we could really add them to everything:)
This looks yummy
Thanks!
lovely salad Nancy.nothing beats a fresh plate on a hot day! love the taste from the past series!
Thank you Vianney!
Delightful roundup of past goodies, and beautiful salad…love the blackberries in there and will need to try that :)
Thanks Alisha! You should, I’m sure you’d love it.