Not another food post!?!  Yes, sorry.  We promise this is not turning into a food blog.  Emily, Caroline and Patty are at Milly & Grace right this second getting ready to open the doors TOMORROW!!!! They will soon be sharing all the exciting fashion and home pieces the store will offer this year!

In the meantime, I am here on the West Coast bringing you, Allison at the Farmer’s Market…

TAKE TWO!!

As an actress, it has been my experience that usually the second take is always better than the first take.  So, I decided to do a second take on the Farmer’s Market!  Remember how the last time I went to the farmer’s market I had no clue what I was doing… well this time I went with a plan!

One of my favorite things to get at farmer’s markets is fresh herbs, and I didn’t get any last time.  That was because I didn’t have a plan.  Herbs are the best thing to get there because they are fresh, they come in big beautiful bunches and are usually only $1 per bunch!  What a deal!

Well, what the heck was I going to make with a whole bunch of bunches of herbs??  BEFORE I LEFT, I decided to flip through some cookbooks (you know, what we used to do in the good ole days before pinterest).  I flipped open Gwyneth’s “It’s All Good” Cookbook and landed in her salad section.  I knew I could definitely find all the ingredients at the farmer’s market for a salad and even her Green Goddess Dressing!  So, I was off to the farmer’s market with a plan!

Green Goddess dressings are packed with herbs, and I knew I could keep it in the fridge for the week ready for other meals.  Gwyneth’s recipe is dairy free and practically guilt free.  To get the creamy effect she used vegenaise and avocado (and now don’t go hating on vegenaise till you try it… I was definitely skeptical of it at first, but I love it now).

And… ACTION!

Green Goddess Dressing

10 Large Basil Leaves                    2 Scallions, roughly chopped                 Juice of 1 lemon (about 1/4 cup)

3 Tablespoons Chopped Chives      1/2 ripe Avocado                                            3 Tablespoons EVOO

2 Tablespoons Cilantro                     1/4 cup Vegenaise                                         1/4 cup Water

Leaves from 1 sprig of Tarragon       2 Tablespoons Raw Honey                         1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt

1/4 cup Italian Parsley                       2 Tablespoons White Wine Vinegar        1/4 teaspoon freshly ground                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a powerful blender and blitz until completely pureed.  Keeps well in a jar in the fridge for up to a week!

And for lunch, a Mango, Avocado and Radish Salad with Pecans.

Sounds like a weird combination! I decided to try something different for my salad!  I LOVE MANGOS!!!  And Gwyneth had a recipe for an Avocado and Mango salad.  Sounds delicious, right?  So I decided to throw together a salad with Avocado, Mangos, Radishes (which are surprisingly amazing with mangoes), Lettuce, Pecans and, of course, the Green Goddess Dressing.  It was absolutely lovely.  Salads are so easy.  Just throw a bunch of things together and top it with an amazing dressing.  And it was Sunday, so I had to have a little piece of YUMMY PRETZEL BREAD!

And… CUT.  I think the second take went much better than the first take.