Strawberry-Spinach Salad

Here it is, the first Sunday of July and once again it's time for the Recipe of the Month.

Since it's summer, and it's been so incredibly hot lately, I thought something light and cool would be the perfect choice, so I'm posting a recipe I found in the "Test Kitchen Cook Book Favorites" my grandmother received from "Better Homes & Gardens" when she renewed he subscription one year.



I have even included a picture of what the salad should look like when you're done, but as ANYONE who has ever tried to follow a cookbook recipe knows, they very rarely ever look as good as they do in the book.

STRAWBERRY-SPINACH SALAD

• 1 lb asparagus spears
• 1/3 cup bottled poppy seed salad dressing or Italian salad dressing
• 1 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 8 cups baby spinach or torn fresh spinach
• 2 cups sliced fresh strawberries and/or whole blueberries
• 3/4 to 1 lb cooked turkey, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/4 cup pecan halves,toasted

1. Snap off and discard woody bases from asparagus, and if desired, scrape off scales.
2. Cut spears into 1-inch pieces and cook, covered, in a small amount of boiling, lightly salted water for 3 to 5 minutes or until "crisp-tender".
3. Drain asparagus and rinse with cold water. Let stand in cold water until cool, then drain.
4. In a small bowl, stir together poppy seed dressing (or the Italian), orange peel, and orange juice and set aside.
5. In a salad bowl, combine asparagus, spinach, berries, and turkey. Place on salad plates.
6. Top with pecans and drizzle with dressing.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

This was always a favorite dish of my grandfather. He loved asparagus and whenever he would go for one of his long walks, he would always take a bucket to hold all the pecans he would find from all the wild trees growing near their house.

I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we all did.