Broccoli Salad

I don't have a picture because we ate it all. Yesterday I made broccoli salad for our church small group, and I forgot how much people like it. Michael was hoping for leftovers, but we didn't have any remaining salad to eat the next day, let alone take a picture of. Now I am going to write down my modifications to the recipe so that next time maybe I'll get a picture and Michael will get his leftovers.

I've based my recipe on the following broccoli salad recipe, in case you're interested in the source. This is a great salad for a summer picnic, but it turns out well any time of year because, even in the dead of winter, the broccoli in our New Hampshire grocery stores still looks surprisingly good. I'm sure it's shipped from somewhere far far away, and I feel a little twinge of regret because I prefer to buy food grown in the USA, but I'm doubtful that anything green grows anywhere near New Hampshire this time of year.

Broccoli Salad
serves 4 people

Ingredients:

• 6 cups of raw broccoli florets, cut into bite-size pieces (about 4 small heads of broccoli florets). This is about 1 1/2 cups of raw florets per person.
• 1/2 cup Hellmann's Real mayonnaise. This mayonnaise is labeled gluten-free and has minimal, if any, corn. It contains soybean oil, but the soy doesn't seem to bother Sabrina since the amount of dressing she eats is usually pretty small.
• 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup of finely chopped red onion or shallot
  
• 1/3 cup of raisins
• 4 slices of bacon, cut into 1/4 inch wide pieces. To find a corn-free bacon, look for one that has just these ingredients: pork, salt, sugar, celery powder, and spices. I usually use a bacon I find at Trader Joe's called Classic Sliced Dry Rubbed All Natural Uncured Bacon. Another corn-free bacon is Hormel Natural Choice 100% Natural Original Uncured Bacon. Be sure that the bacon you use does not have any dextrose, sodium erythorbate, sodium lactate, or lactic acid starter culture, all of which can come from corn.
• 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds

Instructions:

At least one hour before you would like to serve the broccoli salad, fill a large pot with water and bring the water to a boil over high heat. While the water is heating, rinse the broccoli florets and cut them into bite-size pieces. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, and honey. Finely chop the red onion or shallot and put 1/4 cup of onion into the dressing. Then add the raisins to the dressing as well.

When the water on the stove has come to a boil, add the broccoli florets to the pot and set the timer for one minute. Place a large bowl in the sink and fill it with cold water. When the timer beeps, remove the broccoli from the pot using a slotted spoon and place the broccoli into a colander. Then place the colander in the bowl of cold water so that the broccoli cools off and stops cooking. Gently rinse the broccoli until it is room-temperature. Take the colander containing the broccoli out of the bowl and shake gently to remove excess water from the broccoli. Pour the water out of the large bowl. Then transfer the broccoli from the colander to the bowl. Pour the dressing onto the broccoli and toss so that the dressing coats all of the broccoli. Put the broccoli salad in the refrigerator. Take the salad out every 15 minutes or so to toss again so that all of the broccoli continues to marinate in the dressing.

While the salad is chilling, cut the bacon into 1/4 inch pieces. Place a pan over medium heat and fry the bacon, stirring frequently, until it is browned and crispy. Put a paper towel on a plate. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon bits from the pan and transfer them to the plate.

When you are ready to serve the salad, add the bacon bits and the 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds and toss again to mix them with the rest of the salad.