A Dash of Class

One of the most popular foods during summer is salad. When I was teaching foods classes, I often would ask my students to name a salad, and they almost always would say, "tossed salad," "green salad" or "Caesar salad." What they didn’t realize was there are many different salads beyond a typical green tossed salad. Actually, there are four types of salads, and many recipes fit into those four categories. The types are main course, accompaniment, garniture and dessert. Have you ever heard someone say about a salad that uses whipped topping as a main ingredient, "This is so good, it could be a dessert"? A main course salad is just what the name says it is: a main course for a meal. Taco, chicken, shrimp and pasta, tomato stuffed with tuna are just a few. The common link is meat, poultry, seafood or cheese — any type of protein. Many restaurants offer broiled or fried chicken salads, which feature meat served on top of a large green salad. An accompaniment salad also is exactly what its name says; they accompany a meal. This is where tossed salad and Caesar salad fit, but the category also includes sliced pineapple, Waldorf (apple) salad or even Cole slaw, to name a few. Garniture salads usually are small portions and in most cases simply decorate, or garnish, the plate. The ever-popular sprig of parsley or a piece of kale to decorate a steak or a slice of pineapple on ham fit into this category. At the same time, deviled eggs or fruit on top of pancakes are more substantial. The final type of salad is the dessert salad. Though dessert salads often are mistaken as accompaniment salads, they actually can be served alone as dessert, hence the name. Examples are Watergate salad, five-cup salad or the potluck favorite, Cherry Delight. They all have some type of whipped cream, whipped topping or sour cream to hold together the ingredients. Today, I have a main course salad recipe and a dessert salad. This chicken salad is very good and I always get requests for the recipe. Many of you probably have the recipe for Cherry Delight, sometimes called Cherry Fluff, but it can change names by just changing the type of fruit pie filling you use. I hope you can use these recipes and remember, “Salads should be popular all year round”. Nora Sweat is a native of Hardin County and a retired home economics/family and consumer science teacher. She now works at Hardin County Schools Performing Arts Center and can be reached at nora.sweat@thenewsenterprise.com. Orange Tarragon Chicken Salad

1 ½ cup uncooked bow tie pasta or rotini (spiral)

2 cups cubed cooked chicken

¾ cup sliced celery

11 ounces can mandarin orange segments, drained

1 kiwi, peeled and chopped

Dressing:

½ cup lite mayonnaise

1 tablespoon grated orange peel

¾ teaspoon tarragon leaves

¼ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons orange juice (or milk)

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Cook pasta to desired doneness as directed on package. Drain and rinse with cold water to cool. Drain well. In a large bowl, combine all other ingredients except dressing. Add pasta. Pour dressing over salad mixture; toss gently. Serve immediately or before serving, add kiwi. Toss gently. Garnish with toasted almond slices. Makes four 1 1/4-cup servings. Cherry Delight

1 can cherry pie filling

1 large can crushed pineapple with juice

1 can Eagle Brand condensed milk

Marshmallows

Chopped pecans

1 container Cool Whip

Mix all together until well blended.