vegetarian chopped salad

it’s february! which would normally be pretty inconsequential as minnesota is still deep in the depths of a frosty winter, except that this year january felt like it was 85 days long, so honestly just feel blessed to have made it. i’ve officially started my moving countdown - which, i’m not altogether sure i’ve mentioned here - i’m moving! across the country! to washington d.c! i’ll be making the 18ish hour trek to the east at the end of this month and am antsy, excited, fluttery, sad, ready, all of it. from where i sit currently in this countdown (25 days) i’m looking around my apartment at everything i own and thinking it’s genuinely absurd that i would categorize myself as a minimalist. tbd on packing adventures, i suppose.

anyway, this salad! february is by no one’s definition ‘spring’ but it definitely feels like we drift a little further away from heavy, winter comfort food, and into the brighter and crunchier. i decided to go the vegetarian route here (but keeping chunks of cheese, for… cheese purposes, obviously) and swapped a hard-boiled egg for the traditional chopped salami. you can skip the eggs, add salami, do neither, both - completely, totally up to you. whatever you picture yourself delightedly tucking into between zoom meetings, that’s what i want this salad to be for you.

a few things before we get started:
- this makes A LOT of salad, so buckle up for a week of lunches that are ready to rock
- on that note, if you’re meal prepping for the week, package up your salad portions individually, and toss them in the dressing once you’re ready to eat
- there are a lot of tangy flavors and textures here that are amazing, but feel free to play around with your veggie ratios. lots of lettuce and cabbage is key, everything else is your zippy heart’s desire
- the oregano in the dressing is a must, must, must. if nothing else makes this a traditional chopped salad, the oregano is it
- the beauty of this is that it requires next to no cooking - you can even buy the eggs already hard-boiled to make this ultra easy
- it’s super delicious, i promise!

vegetarian chopped salad
makes: 4-6 servings
prep time: 10 miuntes
cook time: -

2c romaine lettuce, chopped
2c red cabbage, chopped
1/2 a red onion, sliced
4 mini cucumbers, sliced
3/4c sundried tomatoes, sliced (you can also use fresh grape tomatoes if you prefer)
1/2c pepperoncinis, sliced
8oz provolone or firm mozzarella, cubed (I used mozzarella!)
6 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled, and sliced, optional
pinch of salt and pepper

for the dressing:
2tbsp red wine vinegar
2tbsp olive oil
juice from 1 lemon
1tsp dried oregano
1/2tsp salt
1/2tsp red chili flake, optional

whisk the dressing until the oil incorporates with vinegar. add all the ingredients for the salad into a large bowl, and toss with the dressing. (if you are planning on eating this throughout the week, toss the salad without the dressing, and add dressing once you serve.)