the salad

hi friends, lovers, & people probably related to me —

133 — march has been a little bit like spring but also a little bit like winter — there’s been some quality outside time but also some snow. all & all i think we’re on the up but that could be the post run endorphins or the prescription strength vitamin D talking

not a soup

one of my biggest things with salads is that they have to have texture & flavor, be something you’d want to eat more than once that week & also not be nearing $20 for just one. you can probs get at least 4 servings out of this salad if not more. sadgreen could never.

ingredients
brussel sprouts
pepperoncini
tiny tomatoes ideally colorful ones
red onion
persian cucumbers (the best cucumbers)
feta
chicken (optional)
chickpeas - 1 can
olive oil
red wine vinegar
dijon mustard
garlic
za’atar
salt & pepper

steps

1st make the chickpea crumble, i did not invent this i found it in the justine cooks cookbook, think crispy crunchies w/ more protein & a bit of mediterranean flair. you’re going to drain your chickpeas & pulse them quickly in a food processor till they resemble coarse bread crumbs, toss them with olive oil, za’atar, & salt — then bake them in the oven @ 400 for 20-25 minutes till they are golden. set a aside.

2nd when doing salads for the week, i usually make sure to have a little chicken on hand either leftover from a roasted or rotisserie one, or breasts marinated in dijon, olive oil, lemon, honey, salt & pepper than cooked on a cast iron. if you want chicken this is the step to do it in otherwise continue on.

3rd make the salad dressing, there’s no measurements for this just vibes and to taste. combine red wine vinegar, a dollop of dijon, olive oil, a couple of cloves of micro-planed garlic, salt & pepper. adjust until it’s so good you want to drink it.

4th easiest if you have a mandoline here but also doable with a sharp knife bc shredded brussel sprouts are one of the most underrated salad bases. after the brussels are shredded and in a big bowl, cut your cucumbers into little chunks, half your tomatoes, thinly slice your red onion, crumble your feta (tony’s has incredible bulgarian feta if you’re in the market), add enough pepperoncinis to make you happy, the chicken if using, season with salt & pepper, then add a generous sprinkle of the chickpea crumble, toss together a bit and then dress individually in separate bowls that way the leftovers aren’t soggy & you can eat it for lunch the next day. unless you like soggy salad than go right ahead!

a proper amount of pepperoncinis & a proper dinner or lunch salad

particularly good things i consumed recently

not quite winter, not quite spring, some weird third thing activities. ma’s birthday! — we made stuffed shells, crispy lemon chicken, garlic bread of course and it was absolutely lovely — she also now has a charm necklace like all the cool girls, kate was in town! — we went to bar parisette for hh & had so many beverages & so much fun + also the shake frites, dove’s the next day was necessary obviously. costco w/ ryan for the hot dogs but also for surprisingly soft sheets & the kerrygold butter big pack. suncatcher w/ kiera & jeremy on a sunny sunday afternoon when it was crisp & bright. a toda madre w/ meg meg take 2 — she was home for spring break & of course we had to go. tutto fresco w/ ryan & dave — classic old school italian & incredibly good. audrey’s picnic birthday — such a blast of course, we brought ants! more themed birthdays & more pies in 2025 plz & thank you! enchiladas verdes w/ a side of refrieds & homemade chips & salsa bc my apartment is a mexican restaurant — delicious the night of & even better the next day when kaitlyn came over to help put a dent in the leftovers. brasero w/ ryan’s parents & some of his friends — a fabulous dinner (highlights — the oysters, the broccoli cae sal, the steak & lobster, the chocolate bundino) we did the family style menu & you pretty much get to try everything.
st. patricks day! — we threw a party that almost 40 people came to, there was homemade corned beef & crispy potato tacos w/ cabbage slaw, soda bread, magners & guinness. portillos onion rings — the most elite onion rings known to man, crispy even when cold. sharpies w/ ryan — we took a long walk for a bloomin onion, a draft marg style cocktail with chartreuse in it & probably the best detroit style pizza we’ve ever had. saturday fake errands w/ janel — we went to center for order of experimentation for coffee & small nice treats (sour gummies, fun pasta, nice pens), barbaro for brunch, una mae’s to browse spring clothes & the library bc i had a hold haha. homemade pasta — i had never really made it before & was a lil intimated, but it was v. fun & delicious, made a fettucine w/ tiny pork & pesto meatballs, a light garlicky tomato sauce & a snowstorm of parm. new smashburger alert @primetime bar & grill — v. delicous lacy crispy patties w/ great flavor, we might have also accidentally won trivia after missing the first round. a perfect friday off in part bc it was SO NICE OUT— i went for run, then we sat outside @ bungalow & had pizza & a salad & soft serve & wine for lunch, then we went to the zoo to walk around & see them feed the penguins, then we went to tumans for the fish fry, then drinks @ central park w/ryan, kiera, kate, audrey, scott, morgan & co, then ryan, kiera & i went to the late night showing of clueless, exhausted & exhilarated just writing about it.

books, tv shows, movies. confessions — one of those sweeping multi-perspective novels with family secrets & lives lived. p. good but i kind of wished it was longer. fraiser — we finished season 3 of er & ryan is making us take break, good thing this is remarkably funny. no way out, enemy of the state, & manchurian canidate to continue our mostly on 80s & 90s thrillers kick, all good & always looking for recs. the turkey & the wolf cookbook — from the library bc we went to nola & didn’t make it there, good writing & a few recipes have caught my eye. didion & babitz — a bit frustrating @ times but overall fascinating, both literary & v. inside hollywood baseball, makes me want to read more of both of them. warriors — literally so much running & also so fun.

currently consuming

a green juice bc health & a giant mason jar of water since i might have drank two espressos rather quickly. whoops!

as always,
mk