{"id":7040633,"date":"2026-08-17T11:02:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T11:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/little-gem-salad-with-lemon-parmesan-dressing\/"},"modified":"2026-08-17T11:02:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T11:02:17","slug":"little-gem-salad-with-lemon-parmesan-dressing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7040633","title":{"rendered":"Little Gem Salad with Lemon Parmesan Dressing"},"content":{"rendered":"


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If you don’t have teenagers or teenage grandchildren in your life, you might not even realize that you’re slipping a little behind the times. That’s part of the fun story behind this\u00a0Little Gem Salad<\/strong>!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Several months ago, I was texting with our granddaughter, Annie, and sent her a picture of something I’d made. Her response? “Fire!”<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hmmm, I thought… Should I call the firefighters? Grab an extinguisher? What exactly was she trying to tell me? Thankfully, before I embarrassed myself by asking, I did what any sensible grandmother would do… I googled it! Turns out, when teenagers say something is “fire,” it means<\/a> “excellent, impressive, or very exciting”! Haha, I told Annie she was doing a great job of “keeping me young”!<\/p>\n

Fast-forward to a recent dinner with our son and his family. I served this Little Gem Salad with Lemon Parmesan Dressing<\/strong>, and our 13-year-old granddaughter, Emmy, took the first bite and immediately declared: “Fire!” This time, I smiled and knew\u00a0exactly<\/em>\u00a0what she meant. And when everyone else at the table enthusiastically agreed, it was confimed that this salad is a keeper!<\/p>\n

Actually, I already had a pretty good idea that it was. I’ve been making this salad for the past few months, and it’s become one of those recipes I turn to again and again. It’s fresh and crisp, bright and flavorful, all at the same time.<\/p>\n

Even better, it seems to go with just about everything. I’ve served it with pizza and all kinds of Italian dishes, but it’s equally at home next to burgers, grilled or roasted chicken, salmon, pork, etc.<\/p>\n

Simple Ingredients, Lots of Flavor<\/h2>\n

One of the things I love about this Little Gem Salad is that there aren’t a lot of ingredients, yet every one brings something special to the party.<\/p>\n

For the\u00a0salad<\/strong>, it’s simply crisp Little Gem lettuce, creamy avocado slices, salty Parmesan and crunchy pistachios. That combination of textures and flavors, paired with the bright dressing, makes every bite SO delicious!<\/p>\n

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The\u00a0Lemon Parmesan Dressing<\/strong>\u00a0is equally simple, made with fresh lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, shallot, Dijon mustard, honey, dried oregano and Parmesan. It’s bright, tangy and savory. The little splash of honey doesn’t make the dressing sweet, just rounds everything out.<\/p>\n

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Nothing fancy or complicated, just simple ingredients that work really well together!<\/p>\n

What’s little gem lettuce?<\/h2>\n

Little gem lettuce is a small, compact lettuce with crisp leaves and a mild, slightly sweet flavor. It’s sometimes called\u00a0baby Romaine or mini Romaine<\/strong>, and although it looks like a petite head of Romaine, the leaves tend to be a little sweeter and more tender while still having a wonderful crunch. The sturdy leaves hold up beautifully to the Lemon Parmesan Dressing, making it perfect for this salad. And on a side note, little gem (pictured unadorned below) is just so darm pretty, with its ruffly leaves in a zillion shades of green, it makes me smile!<\/p>\n

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Little gem lettuce isn’t always the easiest to find.\u00a0I’ve learned that it’s available at Trader Joes and sometimes at The Fresh Market. But, if you’re not near a one of those, no worries! Romaine hearts make a great substitute.<\/strong>\u00a0You can also use those clear plastic boxes of small\u00a0Artisan Lettuce<\/strong>\u00a0heads (usually four to a box) that you’ll find at Aldi, Walmart and many larger grocery stores.<\/p>\n

In other words, don’t spend your afternoon driving all over town hunting for little gem. This salad is way too easy for that!<\/p>\n

For the Freshest, Crispiest Greens<\/h2>\n

One of the secrets to a really great little gem salad is starting with super-crisp lettuce. Even lettuce that looks perfectly fresh at the grocery store can benefit from a little TLC once you get it home. And, as an added bonus, you can feel confident that every leaf is squeaky clean!<\/p>\n

Here’s my favorite trick: trim the bottom inch off of your little gem heads, separate the leaves and place them in a big bowl of cold water with a generous handful of ice cubes. Swish the leaves around to loosen any dirt, then let them hang out in their chilly bath until the ice has melted.<\/p>\n

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The cold water helps perk up the leaves and gives them that wonderful fresh, crisp crunch that makes a simple green salad so good.<\/p>\n

Once the lettuce is thoroughly drained and spun dry (I use a salad spinner<\/a>), spread it out on a large, clean kitchen towel or several layers of paper towels, then loosely roll everything up. Tuck the bundle into a large zip-top bag or airtight container and refrigerate until you’re ready to assemble the salad.<\/p>\n

And here’s the best part:\u00a0you can do all of this a day ahead.<\/strong> The lettuce stays beautifully fresh and crisp, and when dinner rolls around or guests show up, most of the work is already done!<\/p>\n

A keeper, for sure!<\/h2>\n

I’m making this Little Gem Salad again tonight for Scott and myself to go with pizza, and it’s already on the menu for guests tomorrow evening (they’ll also be testing a new pizza recipe). That’s how it’s been all summer, it just keeps showing up on our table!<\/p>\n

I have a feeling this is going to be one of those recipes that earns a permanent spot in my collection, the kind I turn to again and again because it’s easy, goes with almost everything and everyone loves it. So, thanks to my teenage granddaughters, I know exactly how to describe it; this salad is FIRE!<\/p>\n

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Caf\u00e9 Tips for making this Little Gem Salad<\/p>\n