Recipe: Fig-walnut salad has unexpected ingredient -- rose petals
Crunchy, salty, chewy, sweet; this salad has a tasty mix of flavorful opposites plus one surprise.
Figs and walnuts, which are now coming into season, contrast with baby arugula, chard, kale and other cool-weather greens. Crumbled blue cheese gives the salad some extra tang.
This combination was inspired by a simply classic fig-arugula-feta salad served at Mulvaney’s B&L. The fresh walnuts provide some extra crunch.
For extra color, I added some fresh rose petals. (Yes, roses are edible, but only if you don’t spray or use systemic pesticides. Rinse petals well but gently to avoid bruising.)
Many different baby greens work well in this salad. When thinning chard or kale (leafy greens generally cooked before serving), save those little discards for fresh salads. They add texture as well as flavor to fall salads.
Fig and walnut salad
Serves 2
Ingredients:
4 fresh figs
¼ cup walnuts, chopped
¼ cup blue cheese, crumbled
2 cups fresh mixed baby greens (arugula, chard, kale, etc.)
¼ cup rose petals (optional)
Vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
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Garden Checklist for week of July 21
Your garden needs you!
* Keep your vegetable garden watered, mulched and weeded. Water before 8 a.m. to reduce the chance of fungal infection and to conserve moisture.
* Feed vegetable plants bone meal, rock phosphate or other fertilizers high in phosphate to stimulate more blooms and fruiting. (But wait until daily high temperatures drop out of the 100s.)
* Don’t let tomatoes wilt or dry out completely. Give tomatoes a deep watering two to three times a week.
* Harvest vegetables promptly to encourage plants to produce more. Squash especially tends to grow rapidly in hot weather. Keep an eye on zucchini.
* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushy plants and more flowers in September.
* Remove spent flowers from roses, daylilies and other bloomers as they finish flowering.
* Pinch off blooms from basil so the plant will grow more leaves.
* Cut back lavender after flowering to promote a second bloom.
* It's not too late to add a splash of color. Plant petunias, snapdragons, zinnias and marigolds.
* From seed, plant corn, pumpkins, radishes, winter squash and sunflowers.