Chopped Salad (Page 136)

• Date: Saturday, May 6, 2006 - 7pm
• Location: Cambridge, MA
• Kitchen: Paul's Apartment
• Company in the Kitchen: Mike
• Dining Companions: Paul and Brad S.
  
• Recipe Rating: B

I chose this one because I bought a new knife on Saturday, and if there is ever a time when you feel like making a chopped salad, it is right after purchasing a new knife! This salad was fine. It wasn't too exciting, but it was decent. The simple lemon dressing was very mild. The combination of vegetables was nice. Paul added avocado to it the next day and that was a definite improvement. It went well with the pasta dish I made and was very refreshing on a warm spring day.

Chris' dad and stepmom got me a gift certificate to Williams-Sonoma for Christmas, and shockingly I hadn't spent it yet. So this weekend I went and put it towards a 7 inch Wusthof Classic Santoku knife. I bought this same knife for my mother for Christmas and have been jealous ever since. Now I have one too! I love the Wusthof Classic knives. Four knives from that line were part of our required equipment for culinary school, and I just fell in love with them. I didn't yet have a santoku knife though -- I had been using my 10 inch chef's knife for all my chopping needs! The santoku is really fun though, and it's nice when you're cooking with friends to have 2 big knives instead of just one.

Wusthof knives are expensive, but totally worth it. There are certain classes of things that I refuse to feel guilty about spending my money on. High quality tools is one of them. These knives are a tool that I use every day, and will stay with me for many years. That makes them worth the price. Other things I spend money on without guilt: ingredients for food I make myself, presents for other people, and books.