Nana’s Kitchen: Apple-Walnut salad

Greetings, home cooks, welcome to Nana’s Kitchen.

Sometimes a simple salad for lunch is all you want. Perhaps a nice crispy side dish for a larger meal.
Either way this is an easy addition to your table. This salad calls for blue cheese, not everyone’s favorite, but worth a try. Making salad dressing from scratch can provide fresher flavor. Just seems satisfying to make your own dressing.

Apple-Walnut salad and Blue cheese dressing

Salad 1 large head Bibb lettuce, washed,drained, patted dry – separated into leaves
1 Red delicious apple, small, thinly sliced
1 Granny Smith apple, small, thinly sliced
Dressing 1/4 cup walnuts, toasted
1 1/2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoon crumbled blue cheese

Toast walnuts in a small skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Or less. Just till nuts are fragrant and lightly browned. Stir frequently. Place on plate to cool.

Whisk together oil, honey, vinegar, salt and pepper. Stir in cheese.
Place lettuce and apples in bowl. Add dressing. Serve.
For individual servings place lettuce leaves on 4 plates, add apples. Add dressing.
Enjoy!

Hints: Use any red apple you have on hand. Be mindful of the walnuts, they can burn quickly.Toasting walnuts, pecans and other nuts brings out flavor.May use small jar to mix dressing. Gently shake after adding cheese.
Gluten free.

Remember you are in charge of your kitchen. Substitute, experiment, try different things. Taste, adjust. It is how we learn and build confidence as a cook.And, yes, you will have failures. It is ok. Every good cook and chef has failures. Forge on!

Each Sunday take a visit to Nana’s Kitchen with this weekly column from Annie Rosencrance. Everything from recipes to cooking tips and more from an Appalachian prospective will be featured exclusively on the Meigs Independent Press.