Broccoli Salad 2012

Some people use a calendar to mark the shift from late spring to early summer. 

Me, I mark it with the first blooms on the snow peas, the first usable "stalk" of broccoli, and opening day at the farmer's market--all of which just happened this week! 

Two of the four broccoli plants were ready to have their primary central head harvested, so I thumbed through my recipe book for my favorite broccoli salad recipe.   

 The one I like has a basic bulk material of broccoli, onions, bacon crumbles and shredded cheddar, but I added sliced radishes, raisins and sunflower seeds just because I had them.  For the dressing, the recipe called for 3 T of mayo, 2 T of white vinegar, and 1 T of sugar, but I added some fresh dill--again, just because I had it.  The resulting salad brought back great memories of last year's broccoli crop. What a difference "fresh" broccoli make in the crispness category!  And this one is a salad that keeps well in the refrigerator for several days so no need to wolf it down the first day you make it each time.

Just in case you're trying broccoli as a new crop in your garden, here's a good resource for knowing when the broccoli is "ripe" for the cutting:
Bonus blog link:  http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/vegetable/harvest-broccoli.htm

Happy salad-making!