SALAD UPDATE
To make a good salad is to be a brilliant diplomatist. The problem is entirely the same in both cases: to know how much oil one must mix with one’s vinegar. ~Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
A FEW WORDS ABOUT HERBS
Every working kitchen should have an herb and spice cupboard; a closet that opens doors to the flavor enhancements of foods, savory and sweet.
Spices like are often used ground — allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg – and most are sold in whole form as well. When using dried herbs – like basil, marjoram, rosemary, sage, savory, tarragon, thyme – (bought in tiny jars at the grocery) avoid ground herbs. Whole leaves, when pinched, release flavor and aroma into the food. It’s a form closer to that of the actual plant, giving a greater sense of the of the herb. When you can see the basil leaves sitting on top of the baked chicken, or the tiny thyme leaves in the rice dish, or the stiff wisps that are rosemary leaves in the salad, you know what you’re eating.
Even when adding measured amounts, always pinch the herbs. This releases their flavor, increases the ambiance in the kitchen, and offers a bit of a flourish for the cook. Small-leafed dried herbs are tiny enough to just squeeze between thumb and forefinger, but large-leafed herbs (like sage) may be a little too large. These can be crushed with a mortar & pestle.  By crushing, I don’t mean pulverize; just enough to divide them into smaller bits. If you don’t have a mortar & pestle, you can rub whole sage leaves roughly between your palms.
AN EVEN EASIER SALAD DRESSING
I’ve already given you the salad low-down as a place to start. Now I’m going to tell you how to make the salad even easier!  Short and sweet, just substitute balsamic vinegar for the wine vinegar. Balsamic vinegar is so rich and flavorful, you can even omit the herbs. A dressing of oil, balsamic & one of the three binding agents and you’re set! Now all you have to do is pick up the balsamic vinegar. Get a small bottle to try. There are dozens of them, all with their own distinct flavor. Be sure and get one from Moderna, Italy, the protected region that produces the authentic balsamic vinegar since time immemorial.
