Last week, I made this really, really good -OK, best ever – Ranch dressing.
Then this past weekend, I got to thinking about what to do with it?
I mean; it is pretty terrific on your everyday salad, and makes a more-than-fine dipping sauce for oven-fried zucchini sticks, but I was thinking about mebbe going for something a bit… showier.
Something like this…
INGREDIENTS
Ranch Potato Salad:
•1-1/2 lb small red potatoes
•2 tbsp ranch dressing•1 tbsp mayonnaise
•1 tsp yellow mustard
•Seasoned salt
•Black pepper (Tellicherry)
•Fresh parsley
•Fresh chives
•Fresh dill
•Garlic dill pickle slices
Chef’s Salad:
•1 head romaine, chopped
•1 punch asparagus, stemmed and peeled
•1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
•1 tomato, chopped
•Sartori BellaVitano Balsamic cheese
•Chicken or turkey from the deli
– I used Cajun chicken
First, the potatoes. Wash and cut the potatoes into roughly same-sized pieces – halves/quarters, whatever works for you. Place the potatoes in a ‘wave-safe lidded bowl, cover with water, and set aside to soak for 15 minutes.
Drain the potatoes, rinse out the ‘wave-safe bowl, then return the potatoes. Cover the bowl, pop into the ‘wave and push ‘potato’.
That’s it. Once the ‘wave dings, remove the bowl and the lid, check your potatoes – they should be perfect for salad – then set aside to cool.
Next, the asparagus. You could roast it, but I prefer mine steamed when I’m adding it to a salad. Cut off the bottom inch or so of each stalk and, if you like, peel the stems. Rich likes his better if it’s peeled, so I give each stalk a couple of swipes with the veggie peeler.
Boil water in your asparagus pot, or in a large skillet, add the asparagus, and cook just until bright green. Remove from the water and immediately plunge into ice 
water. Drain thoroughly, then lightly salt, set aside to cool completely, then cut into four-inch sections and chill.
Bringing it all together. Toss your cooled potatoes with the ranch dressing, mayonnaise, and yellow mustard to coat. Add the salt, pepper, and herbs, then toss again and give it a taste. I added a pinch of sea salt before covering the salad and stashing it in the fridge for a few hours.
Make the salad by tossing the chopped romaine with the chilled asparagus and thinly sliced red onion. When ready to serve, add the chopped tomato and arrange on a platter with the potato salad. Tightly roll the deli chicken or turkey and place on one side of the platter, then thinly sliced pieces of garlic dill pickle (great with the potato salad!) on the other. You can serve this as a main course by topping the romaine salad with a bit more of the ranch dressing and then digging in; or passing the platter at the table with the dressing on the side and allowing folk to serve themselves.
Nice.
And, don’t forget those oven-fried zucchini sticks for dipping…