Salad Days

Shakespeare coined the term, in 'Antony and Cleopatra' when the Queen uses it to describe her time of carefree youthful pleasure. Nowadays it is often used to mean someone's heyday, or prime. 

For me the phrase Salad Days conjures up thoughts of sunny weather, impromptu picnics, or meals at the table in the garden. Those lovely salad ingredients - Cool cucumber slices, fresh leaves, sweet juicy tomatoes, crisp radishes, crimson beetroot, grated carrot, red onions, peppers in jewel colours, grated red and white cabbage

And extra pops of flavour - olives, cooked potatoes, cornichons, sweetcorn, beans, snippets of spring onion or crispy bacon bits

Sprinkles of nuts, seeds, juniper berries, sumac powder, chopped herbs, crispy croutons, grains, cress

Unexpected fruit - strawberry, kiwi, blueberry, avocado, apple. 

Drizzles of oils, vinegars, pomegranate molasses, balsamic glaze, vinaigrettes 

Creamy mayo, yogurt, creme fraiche, houmous, tahini. 

There are so many possibilities out there, an infinite number of combinations of veg, toppings and dressings. So why do some eateries offer 'with side salad' on the menu and then fail to deliver? A sad little heap of cucumber slices, wedges of woolly tomatoes, and an eye wateringly sharp slice of red onion, balanced on a limp lettuce leaf, accompanied by a plastic sachet of mayo does not count imho.

And I haven't even started on the accompanying carbs

[potatoes, rice, pastas, breads] and proteins [meat, fish, eggs, cheese...]

Salads have been on the English menu for centuries. This one is over 600 years old. Tradition has it that at medieval banquets, the woman with the most beautiful hands was invited to mix and toss the ingredients in the great salad bowl.

Whether everything is combined beforehand, or diners assemble their own bowl from an assortment of ingredients, I think salads are wonderful things.

Do you have a favourite salad ingredient?

Do you make your own dressings?