Summer Salad for the Man I Love, Poem

the longer I toss the undressed salad with my bare hands
the stronger its scent cuts through the hot summer breeze
August ripe cucumbers sweat out their crisp grassy song,
cilantro's sizzle and then silence seesaws back and forth


I've washed, chopped
nursed
every part of this meal
with thoughts of
touching you


tonight
when you experience these flavours
I want you to feel a zing
clapping
light fill your mouth and travel
through you
like a wet kiss promising more







Summer Salad for the Man I Love, Recipe

1.5 cups of cooked brown rice
3 hard boiled eggs, rough chop
1/2 bunch cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 orange pepper, diced
1 field cucumber, diced
1 green zucchini, diced
3 carrots, finely diced
1/3 cup feta, crumbled

I cook the rice, and boil the eggs in the morning. I also make the dressing early so its flavours marinade all day. Late afternoon I wash & prep all the veggies.
In your largest bowl layer all of your ingredients, and toss by hand (trust me, it's good for the soul) once everything looks nicely incorporated add your dressing (now it's ok to use a big spoon or tongs)
I made this salad twice last week. It was the only thing B and I ate; each salad lasted us two nights.
This is a fantastic salad to take along to a BBQ, a potluck, or give as part of a meal basket gift. Fits perfectly into a 2L covered pirex.


Summer Dressing for the Man I Love
in a mason jar add:
10 tblsp olive oil
3 tblsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp maple syrup
sea salt and fresh ground peper to taste
dried sage to taste
2 cloves of crushed garlic
cayenne pepper to taste