So many beautiful summer herbs are growing in our June gardens! Have you ever opened the produce drawer of your fridge, and found partial bags of herbs, and wondered what to do with them? We have too! That’s why we came up with the solution in this post. A fresh herb salad with herb dressing is one of the easiest and most fun ways to put those bits and pieces of herbal goodness to work in a wonderful way.

You can use any herbs you have to create this salad and dressing. A fun way to think about the herbs you mix and match together is like casting a movie – make sure that herbs with strong distinctive tastes like rosemary, mint, oregano and sage play an “extra” role instead of a main character.

Tarragon is another strong flavored herb – but one that can be a real star in the salad dressing. Tarragon, that soft leaved herb with a liquorice-y taste partners beautifully with the buttermilk in this recipe. Tarragon has not only strong taste but big nutrition, too! Tarragon has long been used as a digestive tonic because it aids in the production of bile by the liver. Not only can it improve natural digestion, but it has also been found to relieve common digestive problems like an upset stomach, irritable bowel. Also, based upon several studies, tarragon appears to have chemicals that can help to increase appetites. Whether used as a seasoning herb in cooking or consumed raw as a small garnish, it may help people who have poor appetites due to age or illness.

Herb Salad and Dressing

24 Cups of Soft Lettuces, (like mesclun, spinach or baby greens), bright colored veggies like raddichio and red cabbage and Herbs, (whatever still looks good in the produce drawer 0r in your pots!)

2 Cups Grape Tomatoes, quartered

½ Cup Chopped Green Onions

½ Cup Crumbled Goat Cheese

1 Recipe *Herb Salad Dressing

Toss the lettuces and herbs, tomatoes and onion together in a large bowl. Drizzle with the herb salad dressing and toss again. Sprinkle with the goat cheese and serve

*Herb Salad Dressing

¼ Cup Lowfat Buttermilk or Yogurt

2 TB Lemon Juice

1 Tsp Dijon Mustard

1 Tsp Honey

1 Clove Grated Garlic

¼ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 TB Finely Chopped Tarragon, (or whatever herbs you have on hand)

Sea Salt and Freshly Cracked Black Pepper to taste

Shake all the ingredients together in a jar and taste for salt and pepper