Dinner party this Saturday, I need the perfect brussel sprout and/or kale salad to serve with slabs of home made bacon for first course. Ideas?

Only other thing to say is take a nice walk in Washington, see and buy the art, hope your bill was half of mine.

Ooohhh Bugbitten, I want to see that review! I'll look it up as soon as I finish prepping for my dinner. Thanks for the input!

Ouch, ddecrette, you hit a nerve with me regarding That Certain Little Washington Inn. I have a review on TA regarding their cuisine. IMHO you should decide for yourself what that special sprout is about. To my palette, it's bitter, and should be treated as so. So adjust. Love to the Shenandoah! In my mind there is nothing little about Washington, Virginia, except for that inn. Just me.

This just showed up in my blog feed: http://200birdies.wordpress.com/2013/01/30/kale-salad-with-buttermilk-and-preserved-lemon-dressing/ I haven't had it, but it looks delicious!

jsdunbar: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manchego

p.s. on "M. Wells" salad: just substitute bacon for the speck. I think you could add the bacon in larger pieces than the slivers suggested for the speck.

This is very tasty too:
Brussels Sprouts Salad a la M. Wells from Food52:
http://food52.com/recipes/8647_brussels_sprouts_salad_a_la_m_wells

mmm yum for kale salad, maybe with a homemade chili oil and citrus vinegar based dressing? saw that recently somewhere... good luck, hope your dinner is a fabulous success!

What is manchego cheese?

Here's a great salad that uses Brussels Sprouts, Kale and Swiss Chard
http://www.wholeliving.com/132887/autumn-greens-salad-sunflower-seeds

This sounds amazing. I think I will do it, without blanching the brussels ( I need some crunch) and the bacon will be slab portioned on the side. The flavors sound great, even if hubby doesn't like fruit in his salad. And the Manchego will definitely go with the bacon. THANK YOU!

A signature Brussels sprouts recipe from La Grande Orange, a restaurant in Pasadena, California. As it notes, you can crumble bacon over it. I loathe Brussels sprouts, but I always order this salad when I'm at the restaurant - it's that good.

Brussels sprout salad with mustard vinaigrette
Serves 1

Mustard vinaigrette
2 T honey
1½ T Champagne vinegar, more as desired
1 T fresh lemon juice with pulp
1½ t lemon zest
1½ t whole grain mustard, more as desired
1½ t minced garlic
3/4 cup light olive oil
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

In a large bowl, whisk together the honey, vinegar, lemon juice and zest, mustard, and garlic. Continue whisking while slowly drizzling in the olive oil until the oil is thoroughly incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill well before using. This makes a generous cup of dressing, more than is needed for this recipe.

Salad
1 pound Brussels sprouts
1 T dried cranberries
1 T dried blueberries
2 T toasted whole almonds, preferably California or Spanish Marcona
3 T mustard vinaigrette
1 ounce Machango cheese shaved using a peeler

Peel the leaves from the Brussels sprouts discarding the core. In a large pot of boiling water, blanche the sprouts just until they are a vibrant green and barely tender. Drain immediately and place in a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain and dry well. You should have 3 cups of leaves.

In a large bowl toss the sprouts, cranberries, blueberries, almonds, and just enough dressing to lightly moisten. Top with crumbled crisp bacon, if desired.

Mound on a plate and top with the cheese shavings.