I have had broccoli salad on the brain lately. My mother had made one, which was delicious, but quite different from the one I’m posting here. Hers was made with feta, raisins and a yogurt dressing. After I ate some, I started thinking about THIS broccoli salad…
Back when I was in my late teens, I spent a weekend with a group of friends from school at one of the girls’ family cottage. It was a lovely place—on its own tree-covered island—and we had a great weekend, filled with peach daiquiris (made from fresh peaches!), boating, swimming, late nights and, last but not least, this broccoli salad.
It has three of my favourite foods in it—onions, cheddar cheese and bacon—so it’s not such a shock that I have kept thinking about this salad ever since. I didn’t have an exact recipe, but I did watch my friend make it at the cottage and, a few years ago, I scoured the Internet looking for any and all broccoli salads that might be the right one. (I should also mention a failed attempt to replicate it back in the early ’90s. This was, believe it or not, before the reign of the Internet and recipe research was much harder to do.)
After I ate my mother’s broccoli salad, my mind returned to that long-ago summer weekend. And when I found out that not only were broccoli and cheese on sale at my local grocery store, but bacon was too, it was as if the fates had spoken. I turned to my research file and made this.
This is the perfect summer salad. It’s best after the flavours have melded together a bit in the fridge. It’s a good side dish or it can be a meal in itself.
Broccoli Bacon Cheddar Salad
Makes about 8 servings
Adapted from various sources
1 cup Miracle Whip
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs white vinegar
1/2 medium sweet white onion, finely chopped
1 500g package of bacon, cooked and crumbled or finely chopped
2 cups old cheddar cheese, grated
2 large heads/bunches of raw broccoli (flowerets only)
In a large bowl, mix together Miracle Whip, sugar and vinegar. Add onion, bacon and cheese and mix well. Add flowerets and stir until the dressing is well distributed over the broccoli. Chill for at least two hours before serving.
Note
- • You can use the broccoli stems in a soup, salad or stir-fry.
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