I hope you had as wonderful a Thanksgiving as I did. All four of my grandsons, my middle glorious daughter and my Special Guy were there! The food was fabulous. And a lot of it. Calories in the thousands. But my salad brought a glorious splash of color. One of the boys asked, “What are those orange things?” They were persimmons! Enjoy this fabulous salad. P.S Rather than the dressing they suggested, I drizzled a splash of Balsamic Glaze. Perfect! Recipe courtesy of The Washington Post.
Modern Waldorf Salad with Persimmon and Asian Pear
Bright, textural, satisfying and beautiful, here’s a colorful, composed salad for your next cold-weather gathering. Let the persimmons ripen until soft but not squishy. Use crisp apples with a bright red peel. If Asian pears are unavailable, substitute a ripe but still firm Bosc pear. Mache, also known as “lamb’s lettuce,” is a winter salad green, vegetal and tender. If you can’t find it, use tender young spinach leaves instead. Compose this salad on a pretty platter or toss with dressing and serve in a wide bowl. If mayonnaise is a no-go in your household, swap in full-fat yogurt for a similar dressing.
The dressing can be shaken together 1 day ahead. The nuts can be toasted up to 2 days ahead. Otherwise, the ingredients should be cut up and served within a couple of hours, or the fruit will brown.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise or full-fat yogurt
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 cups (2 ounces) mache or torn baby spinach leaves
- 2 Pink Lady or Fuji apples, cored, halved and sliced 1/8-inch thick
- 2 Asian pears, cored, halved and sliced 1/8-inch thick
- 4 Fuyu persimmons, each cut into 8 wedges
- 2 ruby red grapefruit, peeled, seeded and sectioned
- 6 red radishes, thinly sliced
- 4 stalks celery, diced
- 1/4 cup (1 ounce) feta cheese, crumbled
- 1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) pomegranate arils
- 1/2 cup (2 ounces) toasted walnuts, roughly chopped (Instead I used Pistachios and Sweet and Spicey Pecans)
Directions:
- In a small jar with a lid, combine the mayonnaise, lemon juice and black pepper. Cover and shake until combined.
- Place the mache or spinach on a large, wide platter. Arrange the apple, pear, persimmon, grapefruit, radishes and celery on top of the mache. Crumble the feta over the salad and scatter with the pomegranate arils.
- Drizzle the dressing over the salad (or serve it on the side) and top with the toasted walnuts. Serve right away.
Now that Thanksgiving is a done deal, it’s time to turn our attention to Christmas! And what better way to dive into the Christmas season than to grab the collection my ABB friends and I wrote to bring in the season. Irresistible Scrooges acknowledges what a challenge Christmas can be–until it isn’t!
Irresistible Scrooges
My book in the collection is:
Nothing Good Happens After Midnight
Prequel: Bah Humbug
By Taylor Lee
- The brazen detective crashes the emergency room determined to her question her dying agent.
- The new head of the ER stops her at the door.
- Their antagonism aside, the arrogant physician and the brash detective agree.
- Christmas is the worst holiday of the year.
USA Today Best Selling author Taylor Lee writes Suspenseful Mystery Thrillers – with a heavy dose of Sexy to Sizzling HOT Romance.
In the five years that she has been writing, Taylor has written more than forty books. Her eight, series track her Special Operatives, Covert Agents, Cops, Firefighters and other iconic heroes and heroines, through the harrowing situations that make up their lives. From human trafficking rings to corrupt politicians, Taylor investigates the underbelly of society and the criminals who flourish there.
Taylor says: “From the residue in my personal blender of mixed races, cultures and world views, my characters emerge. It comforts me to know that while evil slinks in the shadows, the “good guys and gals” of the world sniff it out – and snuff it out.
My characters are arrogant alpha males and the feisty women who bring them to their knees – and vice versa… They fight hard, love hard and don’t mince words. They are dangerous men and women in dangerous times. Love, passion and ridding the world of evil? What’s not to like?