Traverse City Salad

A little taste of Northern Michigan…

My family used to vacation in Traverse City, Michigan every summer when I was growing up. I have many fond memories of hanging out on the beaches with my siblings, swimming, jet skiing, shopping downtown, and (my personal favorite) eating out! There’s one particular dish, a salad, my parents used to order at one of the restaurants that always brings back those happy memories every time I recreate it at home.

Behold the Traverse City Salad! The ingredients consist of:

A Mix of Romaine & Iceberg Lettuce

Grated Asiago Cheese

Pecan Pieces

Dried Cherries

A Grilled Chicken Breast

Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing

That’s it! Simple, right? Over the years, I’ve made a few changes to it. I prefer to use only Romaine lettuce (I rarely eat Iceberg) and Blue Cheese instead of the Asiago. Both versions are delightful! After some research, I discovered that there several other variations of the salad.

Another version from http://www.tcfirefly.com/soup.html:

Lettuce (doesn’t specify what kind)

Dried Cherries

Ginger-Candied Walnuts

Goat Cheese

Red Onion

Cherry Vinaigrette Dressing

Another version from http://www.yummly.com/recipe/Traverse-City-Salad-Recipezaar.

2 Cups of Greens (mixed)

1 Slice Red Onion (chopped or separated into rings or to taste)

3 Tablespoons Cherries (dried, taste)

3 Tablespoons Walnuts (pecans, roughly chopped)

6 Grape Tomatoes (1 small tomato quartered)

2 Tablespoons Blue Cheese (crumbled or to taste)

4 Ounces Turkey (optional or chicken cut into strips optional)

Raspberry Vinaigrette

The list of variations could go on, but you get the idea. No matter which one you make, I hope you’ll enjoy the salad as much as I do!