OK, this recipe supposedly served 12.  Not here.  It was decimated by 9 of us.  Apparently I needed to pay closer attention to the fact that the menu it was originally developed for was a “bridal luncheon”.  Aha – lesson learned.

A really nice blend of flavors.  The gulf shrimp from Whole Foods are worth the extra cost, both for their fresh flavor and the fact that they’re wild caught.

A spicy, warm/cold salad with fresh, herbal flavors to usher in a summery weekend.

Continuing our multi-part series, “Unusual Grain Salads”, this one is based on this recipe from 101 Cookbooks.  I loved the depth of flavor that the roasted scallions added, and because I also found ramps at Whole Foods, I lightly roasted those too.  The citrus-parmesan vinaigrette was a winner, too – I used a combination of citrus that I had on hand, so this time, that included minneola, meyer lemon, lime, and orange juices.  I think it would work with just about any combination, though.

Like lunch at Ikea, without the drive.  And with waaaay more Norway.  And allspice.

Pink dressing for all!

This is a homegrown recipe I’ve been playing around with – I brought this salad and dressing to a potluck dinner at a friend’s house, where someone else had brought salmon with Seattle’s Tom Douglas’ “Rub with Love”.  I really loved the combination, both in the flavors and the visuals, so I’ve been fine-tuning the recipes for the spice rub (brown sugar, smoked paprika, thyme, and kosher salt) and the vinaigrette (blackberries macerated in champagne vinegar, shallots, dried shallots, dijon mustard, honey, walnut and olive oils, and salt and pepper) until I came up with this.  I’m pretty darn happy with the combo.