Eight months of weekends - landscape gardening

3. Add vinegar, a little at a time, to taste. Start with about 1 teaspoon per serving; vinegars vary in acidity, and it's easy to get too much, especially in green salads (starchy ingredients such as potato need more acid, as well as more seasonings). This is also when you can add paste mixtures, such as prepared mustard; just put a little mustard (try about 1/4 teaspoon per serving) in the spoon of your salad servers, dilute it with a little vinegar, then mix into salad. Start tasting, mixing in more vinegar and mustard until the acidity and flavor suit you perfectly

4. Season to taste with salt and pepper. While you're at it, decide if your salad needs more oil or vinegar; it's not too late to add a dash of either one.

Moving beyond the basic mixed green salad, you'll discover many other combinations can be dressed with the same oiland-vinegar formula. To trigger your imagination, use the three salads below as the framework for salads of your own design.

Shopping for oil and vinegar

A mild salad oil and olive oil are basic. Extra-virgin olive oil is worth the cost, but the flavors vary, so you may want to taste several. Experiment with unusual mildflavored oils, such as avocado or grape seed. As you expand your repertoire to other kinds of salads, try some of the more distinctively flavored oils, such as Oriental sesame oil, the various nut oils (some have a roasted nut flavor), and oil that dried tomatoes come packed in. Freshness is important for all oil, so don't buy too much at once. Store in a cool, dark area, and keep tightly covered.

In addition to wine vinegars, your collection might include Oriental rice vinegar (seasoned or unseasoned); fruit-, garlic-, and herb-flavored vinegars; or malt, balsamic, and sherry vinegars. Fresh lemon, lime, orange, or grapefruit juice can stand in for all or part of the acid.

Greens with fruit

A sweet step forward from a green salad: try hutter lettuce with orange slices, red onion rings, and toasted walnut pieces (optional); dress with walnut oil, raspberry vinegar (mix to taste with honey or sugar). Other options: romaine or red-leaf lettuce; thin slices of apple, Asian pear, crisp persimmon, or halved grapes; roasted filberts, almonds, or pecans; avocado slices. Dress with any mild oil and enliven with another berry-flavored or white wine vinegar

Potato and other vegetables

A substantial base begins with sliced cooked thin-skinned potatoes, lightly cooked cut green beans, chopped shallots or green onion, and diced red bell pepper (optional); dress with olive oil and balsamic vinegar mixed with Dijon mustard Delicious alternatives: cooked dry beans (or canned ones) or cooked pasta for the potato; cooked broccoli flowerets, sliced carrots, or peas for the green beans. Dress first with olive oil, salad oil or oil from dried tomatoes (add a few tomato slivers to salad). Then add spark with vinegar (sherry, malt, or red wine)

Chinese meat, crunchy greens

It's enough to make the main course: strips of roast beef, finely shredded cabbage and carrot (optional), sliced green onions, fresh cilantro (coriander) leaves, and toasted almond slices; dress with Oriental sesame oil and salad oil (using about equal parts) and seasoned rice vinegar Or use another roast or barbecued meat; shredded cooked chicken, duck, or turkey; chunks of cookedfirm-fleshed fish (such as monkfish); or cooked and shelled tiny shrimp. Try other roasted nuts such as peanuts or cashews