Sharon's Mandarin Orange Salad

From the Kitchen of: Sharon Basham

I have been making this salad for more than 20 years and it is truly great. This past Thanksgiving, I substituted dried cranberries and walnuts for the mandarin oranges and almonds. This salad is versatile - you can use a variety of fruit/nut combos and it's always delicious.

Mandarin Orange Salad

Salad Ingredients

• 1/4 cup toasted, sugared almonds (I used to make these myself but now I buy these in the produce section - it's sort of like a crouton product - and is much easier)
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• Romaine and iceberg lettuces mixed (I usually use a bag of butter lettuce mix but the original recipe calls for 1/4 head iceberg and 1/4 bunch romaine)
• 1 11-oz can Mandarin orange segments, drained

Dressing Ingredients

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 Tbs sugar
• 2 Tbs white wine vinegar
• 1 Tbs fresh snipped parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt, dash of pepper, dash of tabasco (or equivalent)

Method

• Shake all dressing ingredients together - the dressing can me made ahead of time!
• Toss with all salad ingredients EXCEPT the oranges.
• Then add oranges gently so they don't break apart.

Enjoy!