Recently I came across an old recipe my mom's friend and neighbor shared with her 30 years or so ago, and it's still as yummy and convenient today. So I was suddenly making this salad at every opportunity, when my son admitted he didn't really like it. I had adjusted the recipe to take his dairy allergy into account, changing the sour cream/mayo combo to Miracle Whip and sometimes leaving out the cheddar, too, with surprisingly little reduction in enjoyment, but now I was hearing that my efforts were falling on a prejudiced palate. After intense questioning, we finally determined that he didn't like a sweet dressing, and even plain Miracle Whip qualified as sweet, to him. He loves pesto though, so below find the original recipe and my new, flavorful invention based on the original.
Make-ahead salads are great to take to potlucks, as leafy green things seldom work well in that situation - who wants to cart bottles of dressing even if wilting wasn't an issue? And with barbeque season upon us there's even more reason to want recipes that can be made ahead so we can spend more of our entertainment time visiting with friends and less of it cooking for them. And it's pretty made in a glass bowl - at least until you toss it.
Layer Salad (Original recipe)
Lettuce, chopped
Celery &/or green pepper
Onion, chopped
English peas, canned, drained
1/2 c. sour cream + 1/2 c. mayonnaise + 1 t. sugar
Cheddar, grated (approx 1 c.)
Place veggies in large glass bowl in layers. Top with spoonfuls of dressing. Sprinkle in grated cheese evenly over salad. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours to overnight. Top with crumbled bacon to serve, if desired. Note above that even using just Miracle Whip and no cheese & bacon, this is delish.
Springtime Layered Salad
1 box organic Spring Mix (the clear plastic containers, 142gr/5oz, this mix contains herbs)
Chopped celery
Chopped orange bell pepper
Chopped onion
1 can Sweet Peas/English Peas/Green Peas, drained
Approx 3/4 c mayonnaise + 3 T storebought basil pesto
Grated swiss cheese
Place veggies in large glass bowl in layers. Top with spoonfuls of dressing. Sprinkle in grated cheese evenly over salad. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours to overnight.
