Green Salad with Strawberries, Prosciutto, and Sugared Almonds

Displayed in the picture above is the first salad that Matthew has ever eaten. Apparently, he really really likes arugula. He shunned his chicken and hotdog pieces in favor of THREE servings of this salad. It might have had something to do with me telling him that rabbits eat salad. Rabbits are his newest animal fascination. When we go for walks around our neighborhood at night, he keeps a sharp eye out for the little hopping critters). Also, he is really into the Winnie-the-Pooh movies and Rabbit happens to be his favorite character (much to Paul's chagrin: "Who chooses Rabbit over Tigger?!?!?").

Since Matthew was so awesome about eating his salad, he was rewarded with a WHOLE Popsicle after dinner. Normally we cut these in half for him. And I have to say, there is nothing cuter than watching him eat these things. He loves the taste of them so much, that he tries to eat it as fast as he can. However, the chill from the ice causes him to have a pained expression on his face the whole time he is working his way through the popsicle. I think he must have some conflicted feelings: Eating the popsicle is quite delicious while concurrently causing some pretty intense physical pain from the brain freeze.

It really should come as no surprise that Matthew ate so much of this stuff.  It is truly a delicious, beautiful salad. Sweet, salty, herbaceous, fruity, nutty. Wonderful. The perfect salad to take along to a picnic.

If you do not have prosciutto, you could easily fry up about 4 strips of bacon and then crumble it on top of the salad to incorporate that salty flavor. Next time, I might even add a pinch or two of cayenne or chili powder for an extra spicy kick.

Arugula Salad with Strawberries, Prosciutto, and Sugared Almonds

adapted from Cuisine at Home

For the vinaigrette:

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

3 Tablespoons honey

1 Tablespoon shallots, minced

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

For the Sugared Almonds:

2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter:

3/4 cup slivered almonds

2 Tablespoons sugar

Pinch of salt

For The Salad:

6 ounces arugula

6 ounces butter lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces

4 oz. prosciutto, thinly sliced

2 cups strawberries, halved or quartered, depending on size

Combine all ingredients for the vinaigrette and mix well.  Refrigerate up to 24 hours.

Saute almonds in butter over medium heat until golden. Off heat, add sugar and salt.

Toss arugula, butter lettuce, and strawberries with vinaigrette.

Garnish with prosciutto and almonds.