Memorial Day kicks off picnic season: Try a totable broccoli salad
When I was growing up in the 1950s in suburban Cincinnati, Memorial Day was known as Decoration Day. That was the day our large family made the annual trek to Dayton, Ohio to visit relatives and to “decorate” graves of our ancestors with fresh garden flowers.
Mom and dad piled us older kids in the back seat of dad’s Chevrolet. If my memory serves me right, my brother, Charlie, the youngest, sat in front between them.
Now this was the time before super highways so the trip took all day.
Nestled in the trunk was a cast iron kettle filled with stuffed cabbage rolls. Fried kibbi patties, tabouleh, seasonal fruit and plain white bread rounded out the picnic menu. We’d stop to eat at one of the roadside parks along the way.
Today we celebrate Memorial Day by attending outdoor service, weather permitting, at St. Philomena church here in Clermont County. A gun salute to fallen veterans follows mass, and this meaningful gesture starts the day out just right.
Memorial Day kicks off the picnic season and a lot of you will be celebrating with an outdoor meal. Most likely a whole lot simpler than stuffed cabbage rolls and fried kibbi.
Along with grilled offerings, side salads that can be prepared early in the day are perfect go-alongs. And because I’ve had requests for totable broccoli salads, I’m sharing two for you to choose from. Both can be made early in the day.
Buffet broccoli salad with bacon and cheese
So many requests put this salad in my recipe hall of fame.
Ingredients
Salad
1 large head of broccoli, cut into small florets
1 small red onion, diced fine
8 oz cheddar or fontina cheese, shredded
1/2 pound bacon, cut up and fried
Dressing
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup red wine vinegar or to taste
Instructions
Mix salad ingredients.Whisk dressing ingredients, then pour over salad. Toss well.
Sandy’s broccoli cauliflower salad with red grapes
A yummy salad with tangy yogurt dressing offset by sweet red grapes. From former neighbor, Sandy Shelton.
Ingredients
Salad
1/2 pound bacon, cut up and fried
1/2 head each: cauliflower and broccoli, cut into small florets
Up to 3 cups seedless red grapes, halved
1 small red onion, diced fine
Up to 1 cup chopped pecans
1 small English cucumber, diced (you may not need all)
Cheddar cheese, shredded
Dressing
If your cauliflower and broccoli are real large, double dressing – it’s good on slaw, too.
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or couple sprigs, fresh
Salt and pepper
Instructions
Mix salad ingredients.
Whisk dressing ingredients, then pour over salad. Toss well.
Tip: toss again before serving
Dig deep to get all the goodies that tend to sink to the bottom.
Lazarus cafe broccoli raisin salad
This iconic salad originated as a popular salad during the time Lazarus (now Macy’s) Department Stores had in-store restaurants in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.
Check out my abouteating.com site for the recipe.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Memorial Day kicks off picnic season: Try a totable broccoli salad
