Fruity Salad with Raspberry Zinger Vinaigrette

There are lots of things I love about food blogging. I’ve mentioned some of my favorites before. But there are other, quieter and more private perks that I love too. Take today. It was a real quiet day today. I woke up late, took my time getting ready, then went to the grocery store and wondered the aisles somewhat aimlessly as I tried to decide what I’d cook today. I know, I know, that’s the kind of luxury that comes with being somewhat unattached. It’s also the kind of luxury that I get to validate as work. Blog work, ya know. It’s all in the name of sharing great recipes with my imaginary friends at the other end of the computer.

Ahem. Back to this salad.

So when I finally settled on making this salad, I bought all of the ingredients and came home to start preparing. Boring. Once the salad was made, I wanted to dig in, but I had to take pictures first. That’s like, the hardest part of food blogging. Self control. Oh, wait, it’s the hardest part of life. Ok, carry on. But then I finished taking pictures. I grabbed my memory card from the camera, and I grabbed the bowl of salad you see there. And I headed to my computer to edit and post the pictures, and to finally eat my salad. And so I sit here, at the computer, typing the recipe and eating the salad.

Like I said, one of the best things about food blogging.

Oh, and the recipe? It’s one of my favorite. My sister introduced me to this recipe, after eating it at someone’s house. I don’t know who originated it, but the concept is brilliant. And easy. And did I mention brilliant? It’s the salad that we served at my sister’s Sheva Brachos Party, but it’s also the salad that we serve pretty much any time my sisters and I are all together. Because it’s just that delicious.

Make a big batch of the dressing, then play around with the lettuce and add-ins. Its fruity taste goes great with fruits of all kinds, so go crazy.

Raspberry Zinger Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

2 Raspberry Zinger Tea Bags

1/2 cup white vinegar

3/4 cup oil*

optional: 1 teaspoon balsamic or raspberry vinegar

1-6 teaspoons sugar, to taste*

Instructions:

Steep the tea bags in the vinegar for 20 minutes. Remove the tea bags and squeeze to get all of the raspberry flavor out.

Add the oil, additional vinegar if using it, and sugar. (See note)

Whisk to combine. Set aside until ready to pour over salad and serve.

Note about oil: the original recipe calls for olive oil, which gives this a richer, somewhat sharper flavor. I prefer to use a flavorless oil such as canola, for a more mild flavor. Play around to see which you prefer. 

Note about the sugar: the original recipe calls for 1 teaspoon, which we all found much too little. Again, play around with the quantities to see what you like. If you prefer a sweeter salad, you’ll want to use closer to 6 teaspoons (2 Tablespoons) of sugar, less if you don’t like sweet salad.

Raspberry Zinger Salad

Note: this is a suggestion on how to serve this dressing. You can- and should!- play around with the lettuce, the fruits/vegetables and other add-ins. My sister said she originally had this with strawberries- that sounds delicious! Also, candies nuts play nicely off of the fruit flavors in this salad. If watching your sugar intake (like I am) use regular nuts. 

Ingredients:

8 ounces romaine lettuce

1 mango, finely diced

1/3-1/2 cup Raspberry Vinaigrette

about 1/4 cup toasted, slivered almonds

Instructions:

Toss all ingredients together and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend! Thanks for stopping by, as always! -Miriam