Summer Salad with Orange-Sherry Vinaigrette

Salad to me is either really good or just OK.  This salad is really good!  The dressing has a nice complex flavor and is made with Sherry vinegar.  Sherry vinegar is a Spanish gourmet wine vinegar made from Sherry.  The vinegar is aged in American oak for at least 6 months to be considered a true sherry vinegar.  The orange supremes are also easy to cut and add a pop of color and freshness to the salad.  

Ingredients:
3 Navel Oranges
1/2 cup small sweet onions, peeled and thinly sliced
2 TBSP Sherry Vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 TBSP chopped fresh mint
1 TBSP finely grated orange zest
12 ounces mixed lettuces, washed and dried
6 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Zest the oranges and set zest aside.  About 1 TBSP of zest.

To prepare orange supremes, trim the peel of each orange with a sharp paring knife to expose the segments.  Working over a small mixing bowl to catch the juices, remove the segments from the membranes.

cut the segments inside of the membranes at a 45 degree angle

Discard any seeds.  Squeeze the membranes to get out any extra juice. Place the orange segments in one bowl and save the juice in another bowl.
Soak the onion slices in a small bowl of ice water for about 5 minutes.  Drain and pat them dry.  Place the onions in a large salad bowl.  Set aside.

Pour the reserved orange juice into a small saucepan and heat over medium low until the juice has reduced to a thin syrupy consistency.  It should take about 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool.
In the large bowl with the onions add sherry vinegar, olive oil, reduced orange juice, Dijon mustard, mint, and orange zest.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add lettuce and toss well.  Place the orange segments on top and serve on chilled plates.

Recipe from Sur La Table

Mandarin Chicken Salad (Sandwiches)

This is my favorite chicken salad recipe.  It can be a chicken salad salad served on lettuce or a chicken salad sandwich.  I serve it on a croissant.  I really like all of the textures of the ingredients and the slight sweet flavor that comes from the green grapes and mandarin oranges.  This is a great salad for summer time lunch.

Ingredients:
4 cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken
1 cup diced celery
2 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP minced onion
1/2 cup mayonnaise or plain greek yogurt
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup seedless green grapes quartered
1 (2 oz) package slivered almonds, toasted
1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges, drained
Croissants and or lettuce

For the chicken I always roast a whole chicken or bake chicken breasts.  I'm sure a rotisserie chicken would be good too. You want to make sure the chicken is cold or at least cooled to the touch. 

Combine first four ingredients; cover and chill at least one hour.

Combine mayonnaise or plain greek yogurt, and salt.  Add mayo mixture, grapes and almonds to chilled chicken mixture; toss gently.  Stir in mandarin oranges.

Serve on lettuce for salad or on a croissant or your favorite bread for a yummy sandwich.
Makes about 6 servings.

Recipe from The Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook.

Spinach Strawberry salad with strawberry balsamic vinagarette

This is my favorite "go to" salad for any occasion.  We have been making this for about 12 years now.  It is just so good!  The trick is to layer the salad in a glass bowl for a great presentation.

For the salad:
6 cups baby spinach, washed and dried
3 cups sliced strawberries
1/2 cup toasted almond slices
fresh feta cheese ( i really like boars head brand)

For the dressing:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 TBSP sugar
2 strawberries or strawberry jelly

Slice the strawberries, toast the almonds and set aside.

toast nuts in a dry pan until they start to brown

Start by layering the spinach first then add the strawberries around the outside of the bowl.  Add the feta around the outside of the bowl  and sprinkle on the toasted almonds.

Keep layering until your bowl is full.  Top the salad with a little more strawberries, feta and almonds.

Make the dressing.  It is easiest if you have a mini chopper or immersion blender to get all of the ingredients incorporated.  Place all ingredients into the mini chopper and blend.   If you don't have a mini chopper or immersion blender omit the strawberries and sugar.  Whisk all ingredients in a medium size bowl then add 2 tablespoons of strawberry jelly.