By Mother's Day 2024. The annual tradition continues in this kitchen that has held every holiday since I started cooking through cancer and came out the other side with a cast iron skillet and a refusal to stop. I am 41 and Mother's Day means what it has always meant: too much food, the right people, and the gratitude spoken aloud because life taught me that gratitude unspoken is gratitude wasted.
The table is full. Mason (13) and Lily (11) are here, growing taller and more themselves with each passing year. Tom is here, beside me, where he has been since the day he showed up with wildflowers and patience and the quiet understanding that love is not a grand gesture but a daily one.
Brett is here — always here, every holiday, every Wednesday, the constant brother in the wheelchair who has been my anchor since we were children on a ranch that no longer exists. Kyle calls from wherever the Army has him, and his voice on the phone is the voice of the brother who left and came back and left again, and the leaving and returning is the rhythm of this family.
I made garden salad with vinaigrette this week, because Mother's Day demands the food that says: I am here, you are here, we are together, and together is the only word that matters. The recipe is the same as last year and the year before and all the years stretching back to the ranch kitchen where Diane stood at 6 AM making cinnamon rolls for a family that ate them without knowing they were eating love. I know now. I've always known. And I make the food and serve it and watch my family eat and think: this. This is why I survived. For this table. For this food. For these people. For this.
This is the salad I make every Mother’s Day — the one that has been on the table through cancer treatments and remissions, through brothers leaving for deployment and coming back, through children growing into themselves in ways that still take my breath away. A garden salad with a bright vinaigrette is the simplest thing I know how to make, and maybe that’s the point: when the day itself is full and heavy with gratitude and love, the food does not need to be complicated. It just needs to be there, on the table, ready to be passed around.
Best Sides To Go with Tacos — Garden Salad with Vinaigrette
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Total Time: 15 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 large head romaine lettuce, chopped
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 English cucumber, sliced into half-moons
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1/4 cup sliced black olives
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
- For the vinaigrette:
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 small garlic clove, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Make the vinaigrette. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, minced garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper until combined. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking continuously until the dressing is emulsified. Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Prep the vegetables. Chop the romaine, halve the cherry tomatoes, slice the cucumber and red onion, and shred the carrots if not pre-shredded. Add everything to a large salad bowl.
- Add olives and cheese. Scatter the black olives and feta over the top of the salad.
- Dress and toss. Drizzle about half the vinaigrette over the salad and toss well to coat. Add more dressing to taste. Serve immediately, with remaining dressing on the side.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 148 | Protein: 2g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 7g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 280mg