Salad #45 – Salad on a Stick

 

I first saw the idea of a salad on a stick in the Sweet Potatoes Chronicles Cookbook, How to Feed a Family. They used it as a cute lunch idea for kids. I thought the idea sounded potentially very cute (although maybe not so awesome in practice). I wanted to try out the idea as a party appetizer. I put together 5 different kinds and brought them to my book club. They went over really well and were definitely adorable. I did learn a few things about how to best make a salad on a stick. I also have 6 ‘recipes’ below. The watermelon one was the clear winner but they were all pretty good.

Tips for Making Salad on a Stick

• Use short skewers. Toothpicks are too small. If you can’t find short skewers, thread the salad near the tip). Long skewers make it really hard to transport.
• Only slide the ingredients along the skewer as much as you absolutely have to.
• Put something that will stick at the base (eg cheddar cheese, cherry tomato).
• Ideally, put the dressing on on a different plate from the one you plan to serve on. It’ll help with any potential pooling.
• Make 1 or 2 different kinds. Making multiple kinds just complicates your life.
• Feta falls apart and is really hard to skewer.

Watermelon Salad on a Stick

• 2 Watermelon cubes
• 1 mint leaf
• 1 bocconcini ball (fresh mozzarella)
• drizzle of honey
• drizzling of balsamic vinegar (balsamic glaze works even better – I found it here at costco).

Caesar Salad on a Stick

• Romaine Lettuce
• Bacon
• Croutons (homemade is best because they are softer – cut up some pieces of artisan bread, coat in a little butter and bake)
• Caesar dressing

Greek Salad on a Stick

My pictures show a piece of feta but in my experience it tends to crumble no matter how careful I tried to be. Instead, I recommend using a piece of bell pepper and putting feta in the dressing instead.

• cherry tomatoes
• slices of cucumber
• olives
• bell pepper chunks
• drizzle feta or greek dressing  (or mix up olive oil, red wine vinegar, feta cheese, salt and pepper).

Strawberry Spinach Salad on a Stick

• spinach leaves
• strawberries
• almond spices
• drizzle of balsamic vinegar
• drizzle of olive oil

Chef Salad on a Stick

• cheddar
• slices of ham
• bacon
• cherry tomato
• slices of cucumber

Caprese Salad on a Stick

I didn’t actually make this. But I really wanted to. I couldn’t find basil. Why is it so hard to find basil in Calgary grocery stores?

• cherry tomato
• basil leaf
• 1 bocconcini ball (fresh mozzarella)
• drizzle with balsamic vinegar (balsamic glaze works perfectly)

 

Did They Eat It?

There were only a couple salad on a sticks left at the end of the night. The Chef salad seemed to be a little less popular than the others and the Watermelon salad was (I think) the most popular. I would absolutely make them again, but I wouldn’t travel with them unless I could find shorter skewers.