Salads Hit The Road

By Christy Rost, May 2005

We eat a lot of salads in our home – tossed, composed, green, fruit, pasta, chicken, and the list goes on. At this time of year, though, one of my favorites is a mixture of salad greens and fruit. Mango Mesclun Salad with Blackberry Vinaigrette features leaf lettuce, field greens, juicy wedges of mango, and plump ripe blackberries, topped with a gorgeous blackberry vinaigrette infused with crème de mure and blackberry jam.

I always think of this pretty-as-a-picture salad during the month of May because I developed the recipe just in time for our older son’s college graduation in Austin several years ago. Between the engineering school’s diploma ceremony and the university’s large graduation later that evening, I knew we would have just enough time to squeeze into a crowded restaurant for a hurried meal, or settle back for a more leisurely repast in our son’s apartment. With an entourage of parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, it wasn’t a tough decision.

I prepared a moveable feast of ham, pasta salad, rolls, a vegetable tray, the mango mesclun salad, and dessert. Almost everything was packaged in plastic zipper bags, which I tucked into coolers for the trip to Austin. When we were ready for dinner, my mother, sisters, and I assembled the entire meal in 20 minutes.

To transport this salad as part of a moveable feast, wash and dry the salad greens in a salad spinner and tuck them into plastic zipper bags lined with paper towels. Squeeze out the excess air, zipper them closed, and tuck them into a cooler filled with ice. Peel and slice the mangos, place them in a zipper bag, and place them in the cooler. Transport the blackberries in the cooler in their own containers and wash them just before assembling the salad. Pour all of the ingredients for the salad dressing into a jar, tighten the lid, and tuck it into a bag, along with a salad bowl and tongs. Do not place the jar in the cooler, as it will cause the oil to turn cloudy.

Just before serving, transfer the salad greens, mango, and blackberries to the salad bowl. Shake the vinaigrette until it turns a pretty shade of pink and is well blended, and pour it over the salad. Whether I’m at home or traveling down the road, I love the sweet flavor and versatility of this salad. You will too! You'll find this delicious recipe in my recipe archives.