#921: Layered Salad with Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

This salad looked like it was the perfect recipe to make ahead of time and assemble in mason jars so I could take one for my lunches this week.  And, it has a lot of ingredients that I love in a salad (I saw sunflower seeds...that alone was enough to make me want to make/eat this!)

(By the way, sorry for the bad photo...apparently I was in too much of a rush to eat this and didn't realize all the veggies were on one side of the bowl!)

This salad is very good fresh and ,if stored in a mason jar, eaten the very next day.  The salads I tried to eat on days 3 and 4 were awfully wilty, but that could have been my fault and had the lettuce a little wet when I assembled it. 

1/2 cup buttermilk (I used skim) 

1/4 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar                               

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives

Salt and pepper

1 pound fresh or frozen peas                

2 yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2-inch dice (I omitted)             

2 zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch dice                               

6 cups mesclun greens or mixed baby lettuces (I used romaine)                              

2 red bell peppers, seeded, cut into 1/2-inch dice

10 scallions, thinly sliced

1 large cucumber, seeded, cut into 1/2-inch dice

2 large tomatoes, seeded, cut into 1/2-inch dice

1 cup roasted, salted sunflower seeds

 

In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, mustard, garlic powder and chives until well combined. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add peas and boil until tender, about 2 minutes. Drain, run peas under cold water and drain again. In a medium bowl, toss together squash and zucchini.

In a large bowl, layer peas, 3 cups greens, red bell peppers, scallions, squash-zucchini mixture, 3 cups greens, cucumber and tomatoes. Pour dressing over top and set aside until layers are soaked through, about 5 minutes. Before serving, top with sunflower seeds.