Ms. Toody Goo Shoes

Ms. Toody Goo Shoes

I want to go everywhere I haven't been, and back to everywhere I have been.

Monday, January 25, 2016

Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad...and...Driving Me Crazy!



 Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad

What kinds of things drive you nuts?

It makes me bonkers when I go to load the dishwasher, 
and it's filled with clean dishes.

It cheeses me off when I want to brew a cup of coffee in my Keurig,
and it flashes "add more water."

And it drives me crazy when we make plans around Junior Goo Shoes' plans,
and his plans keep changing.
And changing

Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad

Two weekends ago, Junior Goo Shoes asked 
if he could go into New York City to sleep at a camp friend's.
The unspoken question was, "Can you drive me there and back?"
We didn't have any big plans, so we agreed. 
Because he had to be there at 6:30pm,
Mr. GS and I thought it would be fun to stay in the city and have dinner.

Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad

The camp friend's parents are divorced --
 the Dad lives on the Upper East side; Mom, on the Upper West. 
We were dropping JGS at the mom's,
so I spent about an hour online looking for a reservation in that neighborhood.

Five minutes before we were leaving the house,
JGS said,
"Change of plans, I have to go to his dad's."

Seriously?


Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad

Not wanting to drive East Side-West Side-All-Around-The-Town just to eat,
I spent the entire car ride to Manhattan 
searching Open Table for another restaurant on the east side.

An Italian place called 83 1/2 still had reservations available, 
which is usually not a good sign.
However, the reviews sounded good, and we couldn't be too picky, 
as it was T minus 45 minutes to dinner time.

The restaurant was small, and pretty...and empty.
Two of about 20 tables were occupied,
but it was only 7:00pm, so I wasn't too concerned.
Well, just a little, to be honest.


Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad

The meal was one of the best we've had in a long time.
Seriously good. Moderately priced.
If we still lived in Manhattan on the Upper East Side, 
83 1/2 would be our go-to neighborhood joint.   

The restaurant owner has Sicilian roots,
and it showed in the preparation of every dish we had.  
We both ordered the Cavolo salad to start, described on the menu as 
Tuscan kale, arugula, green apple, avocado, toasted hazelnuts, 
with a ginger vanilla dressing.

  One mouthful, and I knew I'd have to recreate this at home.

The combo of avocado and apple in one bite is a match made in foodie heaven
(avocado toast topped with apple, anyone?). 
  If you know Mr. Goo Shoes, then you know that he rarely gets excited about food.
When he said, "This salad is really good,
that, my friends, was a rave.

By the time our entrees arrived, the restaurant was completely full.
My zucchini-crusted branzino was outstanding. 
And guess what Mr. Goo Shoes said about his pasta?
"Best pasta I've had since Italy."

High praise, folks. High praise, indeed.

I've now made the salad a bunch of times,
with some slight modifications.
I leave out the hazelnuts, since Mr. GS doesn't like "nutty" food.
and I add either scallions or red onion, since I'm partial to a little zip in my salads.
It's delish topped with vanilla vinaigrette, which I posted about last week.
Sooooo good. 

I wrote up a recipe, below, just to be official,
not that it's really necessary. 
Just use as many greens as you want;
one avocado and one apple should be enough for two or three salads.


Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad


Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad
Recipe adapted from 83 1/2 Restaurant 

Makes 2 Servings 

Kale (approximately 2 cups)*
Aruguala (approximately 2 cups)*
    (the amount really depends on how big you want your salad to be).
1 Granny Smith apple, sliced
1 avocado, sliced
2 tablespoons chopped scallions or red onion
  
Combine greens. Toss with Vanilla Vinaigrette - just enough to coat the greens.
Put greens on a plate, and top with slices of apple and avocado.
Sprinkle scallion or red onion on top.
Add a drizzle of dressing over the apple and avocado.

Kale, Avocado and Apple Salad: Avocado and apple are a delicous combination! | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #salad

The moral of the story is that 
every once in awhile, being driven crazy yields good results...
a fabulous meal,
a great restaurant find,
and new recipe for the blog.
Thank you (sort of) Junior Goo Shoes for changing your plans, 
because this time, it all worked out for the best.
Just don't make a habit out of it. 

21 comments:

  1. Little things can pack a big punch when it comes to annoyance. I'm right there with you about the dishwasher!

    It's nice to have good surprises like the restaurant, isn't it?

    I'm wondering how things worked out this past weekend?

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  2. Little things can pack a big punch when it comes to annoyance. I'm right there with you about the dishwasher!

    It's nice to have good surprises like the restaurant, isn't it?

    I'm wondering how things worked out this past weekend?

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  3. It's like dying and going to heaven to find a really great restaurant! I wish this one was closer for you though. Plan B is often better than plan A!

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  4. Sounds oddly delicious. I've never thought of avocado and apple but I'm anxious to try it. Thanks for sharing. Cute story to go with it too.

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  5. oooh this sounds like a really good salad - although I would probably put the hazelnuts on too!! I love anything avocado!

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  6. Amy your top peeve is mine... Clean load to unpack to load dinner dishes, drives me nuts! I'm going try your restaurant recommendation for our long weekend in NYC celebrating John's BD. Salad recipe looks sooooo very tasty. Seriously anything with avocado makes me happy.
    xoxo,
    Vera

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  7. Lol - good for you for being so flexible with JGS! That salad sounds divine. Avocado and apple - yum. I must try this and your delicious dressing. Happy Monday to ya!

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  8. "It makes me bonkers when I go to load the dishwasher,
    and it's filled with clean dishes." Oh, I hear you! ;-) Even worse when the dishes are still dirty because I forgot to push the start button.

    The salad sounds delicious indeed! Are you using baby kale? I ate a salad with baby kale and mango at an Italian place in Bethesda, MD, but have not found any young kale around here.

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  9. We are always looking for those little restaurants that surprise you with a fabulous meal. We don't usually go for the most popular place in town. I will have to remember 83 1/2 as my husband is talking about going to NYC this summer. The things that drive me crazy with a teenager and a man-ager are too numerous to list here! Pinning the salad to make for ME...the "agers" won't eat it!

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  10. This looks good and I'm glad the restaurant was good. We hate going in to a new one that is empty.

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  11. What a great story! Things always happen for a reason and you finding this wonderful restaurant and this delicious salad was the reason behind your son's change of plans! Now I am very curios about this salad recipe and I must try it!! thanks so much for sharing!

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  12. Oh if only I were not so allergic to Avocado!! It does NOT agree with me at all!! This looks amazing and don't you just love finding a new incredible restaurant?

    ....and by the way when my girls use my Keurig and leave it empty of water I want to toss them out of my house into the snow. Just saying. Especially since I bought them their OWN Keurig for the lower level. Ummmm.....hello? Don't mess with Mommy's morning coffee!!

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  13. Hello Amy, how nice to eat at that lovely Italian restaurant! I checked out and I'd love to eat there sometime. Your salad looks and sounds so good. Thanks for the recipe. Enjoy the week. Julie

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  14. Well I can't taste that salad, but I must say it is a pretty salad! That's the best kind of dinner when you stumble onto a great restaurant and love the place. Sounds like a great place. You will have to make more trips out there since it was so good!

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  15. This would definitely be MY sort of salad! Crunchy, creamy, tart....all the right stuff!

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  16. The dishwasher thing makes me mad as well :)
    The salad looks great and it makes me feel like eating apples... forbidden to me for now, but I do hope this is not for ever!

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  17. What a neat idea!

    Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!

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  18. I just pinned the salad - my mouth was watering from the picture and it's almost midnight.

    I am not going to share this one with the head chef. I think I'm going to give it a try myself. It's supposed to pour tomorrow, but I think I'll still head out to the store to buy the ingredients.

    Thanks for the inspiration and for Sharing Your Cup!

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  19. This sounds wonderful, and I need to make a note of that restaurant. I'm always at a loss when it comes to UES places!

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  20. This looks so good!! Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home!

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  21. Yum! I’m drooling right now! Pinned and tweeted! Thank you so much for sharing this with us at our linky party. We hope to see you next Monday @ 7 because we can’t wait to see your new creations! Happy Friday! Lou Lou Girls

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