Dressing That Summer Salad

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Summer's in full swing.  Now's the time to  hit the Farmers' Market for fresh lettuce, endive, escarole, spinach, kale, cucumbers, onions, scallions, and other produce for summer salads.

When it comes to dressing salads, I'm typically a creamy dressing fan, preferring Ranch or Blue Cheese to top my garden veggies.  For me, the creaminess and additional body of these dressings delivers additional flavor which I just don't taste in thin French, Catalina, or Italian dressings.

That being said, when it's 90 degrees plus outside, thick heavy dressings simply aren't appealing.  Fortunately, I found a couple products, during a recent sale at New Seasons, which allow me to make light, but flavorful, dressings.

Napa Valley Naturals: Raspberry Balsamic Vinegar - This artisan handcrafted combination of Trebbiano wine grapes and red raspberries has been concentrated, fermented, and barrel aged for five years in a series of cherry wood casks in Modena, Italy. The end product is a dark sweet fruity viscous vinegar with a slightly acidic base.  The vinegar's complex raspberry infused flavors are ideal for flavoring fresh tomatoes & mozzarella cheese, poultry, steaks, game meats, delicate fish dishes (as a reduction), ice cream, and, of course, salads.  I payed  $4.99 for this 12.7fl oz. (375ML) bottle of vinegar.

Lucini Delicate Lemon Extra Virgin Olive Oil - This Tuscan oil is made from Italian olives pressed and infused with essential oils from fresh Amalfi lemons. The sweet/tart lemony flavor and velvety texture make this oil perfect for pan-fried fish, grilled vegetables, lox, and light summer salad dressings.   8.5fl oz (250ML) bottles of this oil can be found for between $15.00 - $25.00.

One's initial instinct may be to mix these two products together for a great summer dressing.   If you do that though, I think you'll find that one fruit flavor cancels the other.  Instead, try making the following two dressings.

• Beat together 1 part red wine vinegar in a bowl with salt & pepper (to taste) until the salt dissolves. Then beat in 3 parts Lucini Delicate Lemon Extra Virgin Olive Oil by droplets, whisking constantly. 

• Beat together 1 part red Napa Valley Naturals: Raspberry Balsamic Vinegar in a bowl with salt & pepper (to taste) until the salt dissolves. Then beat in 3 parts Extra Virgin Olive Oil by droplets, whisking constantly. 

Of course, there are  dozens of other flavored oils & vinegars you can experiment with to brighten your summer salads.  Cuisine Perel's Blood Orange Vinegar is another fantastic option.   Play with ingredients like this and let me know what summer dressing you come up with.
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Bonus Salad Tip:

Those of you who follow me on Facebook & Twitter already saw this tip.

If you're hosting a 4th of July cook out, or other summer time party, to keep salad greens crisp, leave the dressing on the side and let your guests dress their salad themselves.
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