Chopped Italian Salad

Why is it that salads are better when they are chopped?   I just love a good chopped salad.   This one is really awesome, even Matt commented how good it was and of course he was less than thrilled when I told him salad was all we were having for dinner.   But he agreed it was one of the best salads we have made yet.   The flavor combos are awesome together.  The fresh mozzarella and salami were my favorite parts.  You could even do pepperoni instead of salami if you prefer.  Heck I might even do pepperoni and salami next time!   Next time I will also only use one garlic clove in the dressing it was a bit too garlicky for us- like we both got in bed with stank breath.

Otherwise everything was just perfect. This would be a great salad for entertaining because it looks so pretty before you toss it together.  I assembled ours that morning and let it sit in the fridge til dinner time and tossed it together then and added the dressing.  A delicious, healthy, fresh salad.
Enjoy!

|| C H O P P E D   I T A L I A N   S A L A D ||
 adapted via the cozy apron

Salad ingredients:

3 romaine hearts, halved and chopped into small dice
  cherry tomatoes halved or quartered depending on the size
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped into small dice
½ red onion, chopped into small dice
1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped into small dice
tiny fresh mozzarella balls halved (or you can use a big ball and dice)
4 ounces (about ¼ pound) Italian dry salami, chopped into small dice
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped fine
peperconcinis diced

Herbed Red Wine Vinaigrette ingredients:

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves, pressed through garlic press
¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
3/4 teaspoon sugar (I left the sugar out)
 Pinch ground black pepper and salt
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

-In a medium bowl, add all ingredients through salt and pepper, and whisk to combine; next begin slowly adding the oil, whisking until vinaigrette is emulsified.

To Assemble:

-Pour the vinaigrette over the chopped salad greens and thoroughly toss to coat; check and adjust the salt/pepper.