Summer Shrimp Salad we are LOVING + the BEST Salad Dressing Ever!

My mama's love language has always, and still to this day is, food. She's the best entertainer and has always spared no expense or amount of love when hosting or bringing a dish for a special occasion. In elementary school, kids would fiend for Mrs P's turkey sandwiches. Her tacos are bar none. She makes the greatest macaroni salad and this asian Thai salad that will knock your socks off. Whether its a 60's style casserole from her mama (famously called the "medley" and adored by my sisters and I) or her baby back ribs that fall the bone, she's developed a way with food. And never comes empty handed. Which is why we continue inviting her places. Kidding, sort of. 

I like to think that she passed this love of food and family down to my sisters and I. Growing up, EVERY night we sat around the table and ate as a family. No interruptions. No television, no phone calls, just good food and family. If we were at a pals house, we had to come home for dinner. I used to hate it and now its one of my fondest memories from our childhood, and one I try to keep well and alive in our own home today (but our family dinners seem to have a level of chaos I don't quite recall as a child).

While we all have our own styles of cooking and different foods we love (I love Mediterranean style food, Kelly loves plain food which is why she's skinnier than us, and Kristen has mastered anything with cheese), we still love swapping recipes and sharing our favs!

My mama shared this one the other day, courtesy of our family's fav gal, Half Baked Harvest (every recipe from that woman is pure gold). Its sort of a fancy style Cobb salad with marinated and sautéed shrimp that are just divine....but the DRESSING is what took me to salad heaven!!!! So much flavor and excitement for a salad, and filling enough for a heartier (i.e. male) appetite. Here's all the details and hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!!!

Champagne Vinaigrette Dressing:

-1/3 cup olive oil

-3 tablespoon honey

-1 tablespoon grainy dijon mustard

-juice of 1 lemon

-2 tablespoons champagne vinegar

-1/3 cup mixed herbs, chopped (rosemary and basil)

-4 cloves garlic, chopped

-salt and pep to taste

Salad Recipe:

-1 1/2 pounds raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

-6 slices of thick bacon, chopped

-4-6 cups romaine, chopped (I would have preferred a mixed salad with some spinach and more greens)

-3 ears of grilled corn, removed from cob

-1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

-1-2 avocados, sliced

-1/2 cup of crumbled feta 

Directions for Salad-

You'll want to cook your corn and bacon in advance for easier prep. Make your dressing and toss shrimp with 1/3 of dressing to marinate for about 10 minutes. Chop up and assemble salad. Sauté shrimp in same pan that you made your bacon, 2-3 minutes per side. Add shrimp to the salad and dress.

For me this recipe was all about the DRESSING!!! So much flavor and so many great layers...would be relish on many variations. Adding it to my must haves! 

Hope you all enjoy this delicious, refreshing and EASY summer salad, courtesy of Half Baked Harvest!! Hope we can bring more of our Sunday Dinner ideas to the blog and share them all with you!!

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