This weeks recipe roundup is a little different – usually, I try to talk about recipes that use mostly common ingredients. This week’s recipe requires some special ingredients that you might not already have – but I’ll try to talk about some different uses for them.

Today we’ll be talking about my favorite salad of all time – it doesn’t have a name that I’m aware of – at my house we sometimes just refer to it as “the best salad.” Our friend, Laurie Riner passed this gem on to us. 

Ingredients:

Romaine lettuce – you could really use any salad greens you have, but I think Romaine’s cruchiness really supports the flavors well.

Fresh goat cheese (chevre)

Toasted sesame oil

Liquid Aminos (Bragg)* OR soy sauce OR tamari

Dried Cranberries

Pecans or Walnuts

*This is not an attempt to plug a specific brand – this is the only brand I have ever seen of this product in stores. Often I’ve heard Liquid Aminos itself simply referred to as “Bragg’s.”

Now, just like any salad, you really customize the specific ratios of ingredients. My one instruction is to use the toasted sesame oil and Liquid Aminos/soy sauce/tamari very sparingly and taste as you go as they are VERY salty and you just need a little bit to make a big flavor effect.

Hopefully, you’ll enjoy this salad so much that making use of those special ingredients won’t be an issue, but there are plenty of other great ways to integrate them into your cooking!

Toasted sesame oil and liquid aminos/soy sauce/tamari are excellent for Asian-inspired dishes or to give a little extra to sauteed greens and stir-fries. Goat cheese can be spread on crackers or dolloped into soups – it has a distinct “goat-y” flavor itself, but you may also find some that have herbs or fruit mixed in.