don’t be a hater: junkfood salad

Homer Simpson declared “You don’t win friends with salad!” during an episode of the Simpsons but I think I could prove him wrong with today’s lunch salad.

Sometimes in the clutch of desperation, you grab wildly and blindly and hope for the best. I trust my culinary instincts and figure that wandering off the beaten path can make for some interesting results. Last night, Cornelius came home with a large bag of Munchies Snack Mix to help him tide his hunger pangs and when he came home for lunch today, he immediately dove head first into the junkfood bag. I decided that a bag of greasy, salty snacks probably wasn’t the best lunch, so I decided to up the nutritional content somewhat. And here is what I came up with:

Did Cornelius love it? Hmmm, love may be too strong a word but he declared it “edible” — he would have preferred the snack mix outside the salad. Me, I actually liked the stuff! It had the right elements of salty-sweetness and crunch mixed with an earthy tang. Kraft Catalina dressing was my most favorite salad dressing growing up as a child and I had bought it in a pinch one day at the grocery store. It may not be the best salad dressing now for my refined adult tastes, but it really worked its child-like charm on this salad.

8 comments to “don’t be a hater: junkfood salad”

  1. 1
    Heather   March 18, 2006 at 5:16 pm

    I bet that would have been yummy with grapes too!

  2. 2
    kickpleat   March 19, 2006 at 1:52 pm

    Heather, you’re right! Grapes would have been a lovely addition.

    Thanks Rorie! It’s a bit tacky and slightly embarrassing, but I’m okay with that!

  3. 3
    Rorie   March 19, 2006 at 9:57 am

    I love this idea!

  4. 4
    Fiber   March 23, 2006 at 3:43 am

    Hmm – you are probably the first trying to make a salad out of junk food.
    I see a Cheeto Fruit Salad in your future….

  5. 5
    kickpleat   March 29, 2006 at 9:19 am

    Fibre, I may be the first, but I think that’s as far as I will go. Fruit + Cheetos makes me shiver!

  6. 6
    tara   March 30, 2006 at 5:40 pm

    I know someone whose culinary claim to fame is a taco salad made with similar ingredients. He takes Doritos or Fritos, adds cheese, shredded lettuce, Catalina dressing, chopped up peppers, olives and tomatoes, then mixes in (wait for it) cooked ground beef. Sounds scary, but I found it oddly tasty.

    I can’t believe I just admitted that.

  7. 7
    kickpleat   March 31, 2006 at 2:33 pm

    Tara, don’t worry, admitting it is just the first step! I can’t believe I posted about my junk food salad, so I think we’re even 🙂

  8. 8
    Anonymous   August 13, 2006 at 7:04 pm

    It’s not your taste that has changed–it’s the kraft catalina dressing that has changed!

    that stuff used to be good; but now, who knows what they did to ruin it?

    tastes like runny bland sweet tomato puree without the spices it used to have.

    Remember when you had to literally shake the dressings out of the bottle?
    The companies love it now when they can water them way down but no one remembers how thick they used to be….or complains about it!

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