pink salad

so my latest variation from the signature is what i'm calling the pink salad. the main addition is a small to medium sized beet, peeled and grated just like it was a carrot. the more you toss it, the more pink ends up sneaking into the other ingredients, particularly the feta. shake (of shake & bake fame), was sort of shocked that the beat could be used raw, so maybe this is something other folks would be interested in knowing as well?

i made a fresh one today, but can't seem to find my camera cable and the photos i took on my photo are awful, so you'll have to settle for the photo above, taken at pre-thanks this year. the longer you keep the leftovers, the pinker everything else gets. on the third day, it looked more like japanese pickles than salad really.

same dressing as usual too, although maybe a little more mustard than usual just to combat the extra earthiness of the beat.

DIY salad dressing

So everything I know about salad dressing I learned from Abby. I think its worth stating that I never buy salad dressing unless I'm going to a BBQ or somewhere that there's absolutely no access to kitchen cabinets, because making the perfect salad dressing is so damn easy.

ingredients

• extra virgin olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• garlic (ground or minced)
• lemon juice
• stoneground mustard
• horseradish (optional, but highly reccomended)
• salt & pepper

So you start with the olive oil, and then pour a good sized dollup of balsamic in there. Never be afraid of too much garlic. Even folks who don't like mustard won't say a word if they don't see you put it in there. The horseradish tastes great, but if you don't care to procure the stuff directly I often use a horseradish mustard to kill two birds with one stone. The only part to go slow on is with the salt. Put in too much salt and you'll have to start over.

All the parts will separate, so just keep stirring it as you add your elements and taste frequently. As soon as I get the mixture right I usually dump it right on my signature salad.