House Salad Recipe

Prepare vegetables

Wash and thoroughly dry all salad greens using a salad spinner or clean kitchen towels. Tear larger leaves (romaine, red leaf) into bite-sized pieces and place in a large bowl. Peel (if desired) and thinly slice the cucumber into half-moons until you have about 1/2 cup. Dice or cut tomatoes into roughly 1/2-inch pieces to yield about 1 cup. Thinly slice red onion into half-moons and separate into rings to equal 1/4 cup. Peel and grate or julienne the carrot to measure 1/2 cup. Thinly slice radishes if using.

Add the cucumber, tomato, red onion, carrot, and radish slices to the bowl with the greens. Toss gently to combine so vegetables are evenly distributed.

Roughly chop the parsley and finely chop the mint if using. Sprinkle the herbs over the assembled salad and toss lightly to incorporate. Reserve a small pinch of parsley for garnish if desired.

Make the dressing

In a small bowl or jar, combine the lemon juice, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey (or agave), and minced garlic. Whisk or shake to combine. Slowly stream in the extra-virgin olive oil while whisking to emulsify the dressing. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, taste, and adjust acidity or sweetness as needed (add more lemon for brightness or more honey for sweetness).

Dress the salad

Just before serving, pour about half of the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat the leaves and vegetables evenly. Add more dressing to taste — typically 2 to 3 tablespoons per serving of the salad mixture, using the remaining dressing as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning with an additional pinch of salt or pepper if required.

Transfer the dressed salad to a serving bowl or divide into individual plates. Garnish with the reserved pinch of parsley. Serve immediately so greens remain crisp.