The making of vegetable salads is so easy, in nearly every case the simple French dressing being all that is required, that every cook, household or professional, ought to know how to mix it.
Pin this recipe over the cooking table and learn it by heart ; it may be used for all salads, never deviating from quantities unless you require a salad for eight or ten people, when the rule may be doubled, or may be divided by two if there are only two or three people in the family. This amount will serve from four to six people, according to their appetite. Set a bowl in the refrigerator for half an hour before making the dressing; if the oil is chilled, too, the work will be found easier. Into the bowl put half a teaspoon of salt, a quarter teaspoon of pepper and two tablespoons of vinegar, stir till thoroughly mixed, then pour in slowly while stirring constantly with a wire whisk, a quarter of a cup of olive oil. Add a bit of ice as large as walnut and beat with the whisk till the dressing is as thick as cream. It is then ready to pour over the salad.
Vegetables to be used in salads can scarcely be too fresh. They should be thoroughly washed, laid in a basin of ice water and allowed to stand till crisp. Drain them, shake as much water from them as possible, then dry between towels. Do not add the dressing except in the case of potato salad or in a salad made of cold, left-over or canned vegetables, till just before sending to the table. Green vegetables will wilt if left to stand covered with dressing. When a number of vegetables are used in the same salad, but with the greatest of care in keeping them separate when in the dish, each vegetable ought to be marinated before putting the salad together.
Marinate means pouring French dressing over a salad material and allowing it to become well seasoned before serving. Occasionally the least possible flavor is desired in a salad of garlic or onion. For this purpose make what the French call a chapon. Take an inch of bread crust and rub it with a clove of garlic or an onion, cut in two and dipped in salt. Put the crust in the bottom of the dish before arranging the salad, and there will be an aroma of the herb rather than a flavor.
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