Sincerely Salad
A bowl of salad sits on my table, and I’m not quite sure if its come out right. I’ve watched Tyler Florence or even Jamie Oliver dip their hands into large salad bowls, gently folding the fresh greens with unusual dressings, and I’ve seen Giada’s elegant touch to Italian salad or even Emeril’s exotic recipes, but I couldn’t imagine myself adding anything more to my mixes other than the tried and tested Caesar salad or Caprese. Well at least not until I finally did not too long ago. With plenty of vegetables, fruits, nuts and dried fruits stocked up at home, I finally went for it- mixing whatever I felt would gel together or not in my oversized glass dish. And about 15 mins later, my salad was done! I added the dressing, which looked much like a coleslaw dressing, and then it struck me.
The salad is all covered in creamy white, and now I can’t tell one ingredient from another! There must have been at least 10 different kinds of vegetables in there along with fruit and nut, but they’re all hidden under the dressing. Well, I’m not sure I’d prefer this beautiful salad to be all covered up in the thick sour-cream based dressing, but I’m glad it tasted fine.
I guess i’ve come to realize that its not so much about making salad but the fact that so many different kinds of items can actually harmonize despite their contrasting flavors and textures. If one can mix nuts, potatoes, pears, celery, onion, currants and much more to make a fine treat, imagine how much more diverse and crazy ingredients one could possibly integrate- and not just in a salad.
We too embody diversity whether in skin color or personality. In fact, no one person may be the exact in any way as another, yet we can come together like a bowl of salad. From the hard nuts to the soft avocados, there’s plenty of room for all kinds of textures, colors and flavors. Place them all together under a blanket of sweet dressing, and we have one united family! All the better that the dressing is so thick it covers up almost any difference in the ingredients. It all becomes one, and if you don’t believe me, taste it. It isn’t bitter or sour, but a perfect touch of sweetness. That’s the flavor I must have been seeking unconsciously as I made my new salad. It’s the dressing of love that hides all the differences and harmonizes the collective no matter what you throw in there!
Now, I’m sure not many might like to hide their salad greens, yellows and reds under a thick dressing, but then its just a salad. But surely there can be no harm in attempting to toss in plenty of love and laughter when color, size and behavior don’t and shouldn’t matter.
