Sunday, October 08, 2006

Sigh of relief

My parents' visit went well. They gave my apt. the "Good Housekeeping seal of approval," so I guess all the frantic last-minute cleaning was worth it. We went to the Lincoln Park Conservatory and Zoo, which they loved. I also took them on their first trip to Trader Joe's. It was packed since it was a Sat. afternoon, but they still enjoyed it.

I discovered a great new TJ's product: candied walnuts. Delicious for munching and snacking, they're also a great addition to my favorite salad. Here' s the recipe:

Blue and Green Salad

Mixture of baby lettuces, baby romaine lettuces, or spring greens

Chopped apples – crisp and tart apples are best. I prefer Granny Smith and Haralson, a variety developed at the University of Minnesota.

Chopped walnuts – Trader Joe’s new candied walnuts are fabulous, but plain/toasted work well, too.

Crumbled blue cheese – I often use Trader Joe’s crumbled Amish blue cheese (very affordable)

Dressing:

Use roughly equal parts of the following:

- rice wine vinegar

- olive or walnut oil

- raspberry preserves or jam. I use Malkin’s raspberry jam, which comes in a can and is hard to find outside of Minnesota and Canada, but I’m sure that just about any good quality raspberry preserves would do.

I add a little bit of pepper to the mixture, and I shake it up well.
Combine salad ingredients and dressing and toss.

Addendum to SP9 Questionnaire

Here's proof that some of my knitting needles actually do have a good home!

5 comments:

Tandi said...

Those containers are so cute!

Jana said...

That salad sounds terrific! Perfect for fall!

Leah said...

Super cute containers!!

Calling on Kahlo said...

Those containers are so cute, where did you get them from?

Jodi said...

I found the sheep vases/needle holders at TJ Maxx. They were a bargain, of course!

I do a good amount of shopping at TJ Maxx, especially for housewares. I go often and I'm not afraid to dig through piles and look around for a while. I actually find it very relaxing!