8.09.2011

As ye plant, so shall ye reap...

On my way to the green house earlier this spring to buy some annual
flowering plants
the dear husband
yelled out,
"pick me up a tomato plant"...
We gave up on a large vegetable garden years
ago, our yard is just too shady.
He seemed to have forgotten
that tomatoes need sun.
So I found a patio tomato already potted,
it even had a marigold and green pepper planted in with it.
I thought, I'll just put the pot in the sunniest spot
in our yard I can find...
The tomato was big and already had small
tomatoes setting on,
it looked good
so I bought it for the dh.
I would have taken a picture of the thing
but,
well,
let's say it doesn't look so good anymore...
the dh isn't the best at keeping it watered,
it has caught a blight,
thee marigold died
and so did the green pepper
but
hey....
we harvested enough tomatoes
last evening for
a favorite
summertime salad...
So this big tomato harvest of ours
calls for
celebration
&
to celebrate,
I
cut up a pound of raw bacon in small pieces
with kitchen shearers
and fried it nice and crisp.
I then drained the bacon on paper toweling.
I then whip up a batch of home made dressing:
2/3 cup real mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons vinegar
Stir until the sugar melts.

I then make a batch of home made croutons.
I know,
I know,
you're starting to think
Martha Stewart,
right??
No cheating here folks,
really,
they got to be home made kind,
they are B.E.S.T!
I take a small loaf of french bread and cut into small cubes (day old bread works the best).
I throw the cubes into a large zip lock bag and
drizzle light olive oil over them and shake the bag. I continue to add more oil, until the bread looks evenly coated. I then grind in some fresh pepper and sea salt. Toss in some garlic salt and about a half a package of dry Hidden Valley salad dressing mix. Toss cubes around in the bag until they are nicely coated. Lay cubes on a cookie sheet and bake in a 400 degrees oven for about 15 - 20 minutes.
Yummers...
I then chop up a half of an onion
and our days harvest of tomatoes...
Chop up a head of lettuce
and toss it all together....
you now have made BLT salad,
the best summer-time salad,
a family favorite!
(Note- must be eaten right away, isn't a salad you can keep)
And the tomatoes
in this salad???
They were D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S,
thanks to the dear husband
:-)

Note- we use this as a main course salad,
it's our meal,
period.
nothing else.
just blt salad.
We just eat and eat
and feel like a couple
of maniac rabbits
when the bowl is empty.
{sigh}

Enjoy!
Brenda

12 comments:

Kathy said...

Oh does that looks yummy. Mmmmmmmmm. And it's only breakfast time. I'll be thinking of this salad all day. :)

Shirlee said...

Oh yum! This sounds SO good ... & your husband sounds SO like my husband regarding the watering ... lol! I can't even mention the word "weeding" to him but he's quick to point the weeds out to me! Anyway, we planted 2 tomato plants this year. They got flowers but never any tomatoes. We also planted a watermelon plant. Again flowers but no fruit. Looked everywhere for green onions last year. When I saw them on sale this past spring I grabbed a bag of them imagining delicious green onions picked fresh from the garden. They are still in the bag in the garage ... probably dried up by now. Anyway, enjoyed your post & will have to try that salad : ) Blessings, Shirlee

Cindy said...

This looks so good! I love salads and when tomatoes are ripe we eat them everyday.
I am your newest fan! I ordered a couple of things from you last winter, but hadn't checked out your blog. But now you are on my list!

MoonBeam said...

Looks yummy. We had a version of this at a stitching get-together recently and everyone really liked it. Ours didn't have home made croutons, however!

Summer has just become tolerable again, now that the high 90's have left. Time to enjoy!

edie said...

I don't believe it! I had just been searching (love Google) for a good recipe for panzanella as we have a good crop of tomatoes right now (have the same issue with my husband!), then I bounced over to your blog (one of my favorites), and WOW -- the best recipe I have found. I have used several of your recipes that have become go-tos for us (have ham and swiss sliders on the list for later this week). Thank you so much for WONDERFUL stitching goodies and food too! What more could a stitcher ask.

TheCrankyCrow said...

This looks and sounds like an absolute winner Brenda...Thanks so much for sharing! I LOVE homemade croutons - but have never added the dressing mix to them. Something else fun to try!! Have a great Tuesday!! Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin

butterfly said...

That salad looks so good i must try it this week, we have loads of tomatoes ready so here goes

jill said...

sounds fabulous, will try it with farmer's market tomatoes!!!

WoolenSails said...

I love fresh salads, so far, I have tons of tomatoes, but no ripe ones. I need to start earlier next year. I love eating lighter in the summer and a good salad is the best. I also make my own mayonaise, but i use lemon juice.

Debbie

P.J. said...

Will definitely be trying that salad recipe. Love the crouton recipe! I smell bacon....

Mary @ Neat and Tidy said...

What a fun post! And the salad sounds so good.

Dinie said...

Visiting Minnesota, and I made this salad for son and family, Wow, it is wonderful.... so good that my son has requested it again :)