Salad dressings for summer

Every season has its attraction for cooks. Summer seems to call for salads, salads and salads.

One of my favorites is Salad Niçoise. While your version and my version may differ, both will require a salad dressing. Methinks homemade is best.

Let your creativity and palette reign supreme using the listing of ingredients and choose one of the two similar yet different salad dressings. It’s simply a personal choice.

Perhaps the only suggestion is to lightly marinate the green beans and potatoes with just enough salad dressing so they “glisten” about an hour before assembling the salad.

There aren’t any “wrong” ways…except maybe not to venture forth. I’d say, like Nike, “Just Do It.”

Salad Niçoise

Lettuces *Romain, iceberg, Red or Green leaf

Green beans cooked ‘al dente”

Cooked red potatoes, peeled and sliced or quartered

Hard cooked eggs, halved or quartered

Pitted ripe olives

Albacore tuna, drained

Slivers of cooked ham

Red onion, thinly sliced and quartered or halved

Anchovies, cut into bite-size pieces

Ripe tomatoes, quartered

Salad dressing

Provencal salad dressing # 1

¼ cup white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

Fresh ground pepper

½ teaspoon each freshly chopped tarragon and chervil

1 teaspoon minced parsley

1 tablespoon minced chives

¾ cup olive oil

Combine ingredients in a pint jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake until well-blended.

Makes 1 cup

Provencal salad dressing #2

1 ½ tablespoons Dijon mustard

½-1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons minced parsley

1 teaspoon dry “herbs Provence” (thyme, marjoram, oregano)

Blend salt with mustard. Beat together with red wine and olive oil.

Chop parsley with dry “herbs Provence.” Beat herbs into mustard mixture with a fork or whisk.

Makes about ¼ cup.

A citrus salad can be an attractive accompaniment to grilled chicken, fish, seafood and unadorned pork kabobs. You don’t want the salad to “fight” with BBQ sauces or intensely flavored marinades.

Here is a good bet for many occasions.

Spinach Citrus Salad

2 bunches fresh tender spinach

3-4 oranges, sectioned

1 small red onion, thinly sliced

Desired dressing

Wash and trim spinach leaves. Dry thoroughly. Peel and section oranges. Put ¼ cup salad dressing in the bottom of a salad bowl. Toss well with ingredients just until greens are lightly coated, adding a drizzle or more of salad dressing as needed. 4 servings.

Salad dressing #1 for Citrus Salads

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon poppy seed or celery seed

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup Daisy sour cream

Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate at least one hour before using. Makes 1 cup

Salad dressing #2 for Citrus Salads

1 tablespoon honey

2 tablespoons orange rosemary vinegar

6 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil

Combine ingredients in a blender container or small Cuisinart. Blend until oil and vinegar are well combined. If made ahead of time, shake well before using.

Makes ½ cup