Mullins - Salad Makes the Meal: 150 Simple and Inspired Salad Recipes Everyone Will Love

This book is dedicated to

Wiley Mullins, Jr. and Hattie Peoples Mullins, my parents, who unfortunately did not live to enjoy this book, but would have found great pleasure in realizing the impact that they and many of their friends and neighbors had and continue to have on my lifes work. They were phenomenal parents to me and my siblings, Michael, Ozzie, and Mary.

Mable Morris Mullins, Julia Gamble Peoples, and Wiley Mullins, Sr., my grandparents, who made growing up close to them a memorable experience every day. Each of them in their own unique way fueled my passionwellness.

Carol Brooks and Jean Long Graves, two incredible women who through their many acts of kindness to others challenge me to serve mankind with grace, friendship, love, and a smile.

Robert and Edith Keith: A remarkable couple, who as a couple define the word teamwork. Together, they tirelessly offer support and care for many people around the world.

Contents

Id like to thank the following people for helping to make this book a reality. I am so very appreciative for their thoughts, ideas, and support.

Coleen OShea: A terrific agent whose demeanor is quiet, yet strong, continuously offered valuable input to the entire process. Coleen, thanks for taking the time to always listen!

Pamela Cannon: A gifted collaborator, whose unique collection of talents and skills made this effort a wonderful experience and fun, too.

Stephanie Lyness: Her knowledge of good-tasting, good-for-you foods is woven in the recipes throughout this book. Thank you for sharing your wide-ranging knowledge and experience.

Shea Zukowski, Andrew Malkin, and the entire Rodale team: Thank you for everything ranging from your initial support of the concept, to the creation of this book, to the rewarding publishing experience youve afforded me. This has truly been a highlight of my life.

Why Salad?

For years, people in the produce business have called me The Salad Man because Im so passionate about salads.

To me, salads are so amazingly versatile that no meal seems complete without one. Whether its starting my day with a colorful fruit salad at breakfast, enjoying a sizzling Steak and Tomato Salad with Horseradish Dressing for lunch, or ending my dinner with a sweet and satisfying Banana Pudding Salad, salad is perfect at every meal. I actually consider salads the ultimate comfort food because they are not only soul-satisfyingly delicious, but they are also an important part of my personal journey towards optimal health. To help you see how I got to this point, and most importantly, to show you how salads can change your life too, let me start with a little personal history.

From Farm to Table

I grew up in the 1960s, the youngest of four children in Tuscumbia, Alabama, and my fondest memories involve food, which was always prepared and presented as an act of love. Whether it was the sweet potato pies my grandmother shipped to me at college with a note telling me to share with my friends, or the candies that the senior ladies at church used to slip me and my siblings (thank you again Miss Lizzie East, Miss Lucy Vinson, and Aunt Mattie Mae), we knew we were loved.

Much of my childhood was spent in and around my grandmothers garden. At the end of each growing season I would spend days at a time standing next to Mama Julia as she canned pear preserves, peach halves, beans, tomatoes, and chow-chow (cha-cha) pickles. When I wasnt with her, my grandfather, Wiley Mullins, Sr., continued my food education. He was a driver for a produce company, and my brother and I would often ride along with him on his Saturday delivery route. Along the way he would show us how to judge a foods freshness and ripeness and point out how quickly fruits and vegetables can turn. Because of my grandparents, we always ate the best produce in season, at the peak of flavor, right off the vine.

Despite that early beginning, for a long time, my definition of a salad was iceberg lettuce and tomatoes tossed with Miracle Whip. If you had told me then that I could get nutrients from fresh, colorful produce that could help fight cancer and heart disease, improve memory, and enhance eyesight, I wouldnt have believed it.

You see, one of the realities of growing up in a small Southern town is that people oftentimes repeat something over and over again until it seems to become truth. Such is the case of how the people I grew up with viewed sickness, health, and mortality. Youre gonna die with something, or Youre not going before your time, or God knows best, whats for you, youre going to get. Folks just didnt understand the seriousness of chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Many were conditioned to believe that sickness was simply inevitable. For most of my life, I too had accepted these statements as gospel, until I realized that we can improve our health and enjoy a better quality of life by making better food and lifestyle choices.

A Concern for Health

Looking back, given my early interest in gardening and the produce business, its easy to see how natural it was for my career to start with salads. Ironically, the busy, hectic lifestyle that path required eventually set me up for some serious health consequences.