I was watching an older episode of Giada De Laurentiis’ television show, Everyday Italian the other day, and saw this recipe for a simple northern Italian salad. Simply thinly sliced mushrooms, diced celery, parsley and cubes of my favorite salty cheese, Pecorino Romano.  Topped with a simple vinaigrette, the crunch of the raw vegetables is a perfect match for the cubes of hard, flavorful cheese.  I like to drizzle the vinaigrette over the raw vegetables about 30 minutes before serving the salad, so that the vinaigrette slowly macerates the vegetables and infuses them with its flavors.

(To view this recipe, click on the following link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/mushroom-and-pecorino-salad-recipe.html)

Tagged: celery, Giada De Laurentiis, Italian, mushrooms, pecorino cheese, Pecorino Romano, Salad, side dish, vegetarian, vinaigrette