Smothering the Salad

JV: Francis, what do you live with?

Francis: My partner over-dresses the salad.

JV: Over-dresses the salad?

Francis: Yes. He has a big pot of salad dressing that his mother made him and he overdresses the salad with it. So much so, that there’s about a quarter of a cup of salad dressing on the bottom of the bowl every night.

JV: That does sound too much, doesn’t it?

Francis: It is too much! I don’t know what to do about it.

JV: Do we need to unpack the issue that the mother is making the salad dressing and bringing it over?

Francis: Well I think it was because he was complaining that I wasn’t making a lot of salad dressing. But I knew if I made a lot, it’d all go on there so I just make a tablespoon at a time.

JV: Right. Does he put a lot on the salad and then consume a lot?

Francis: Yes.

JV: Does he try to get as much dressing as he can?

Francis: Yes, he does.

JV: Right, so he likes dressing.

Francis: He loves dressing. He loves it.

JV: What kind of salad dressing is it?

Francis: It’s a balsamic vinegar. Just olive oil with some balsamic, salt and pepper, and garlic.

JV: Could there be a two bowl solution here?

Francis: We’ll we’ve implemented a system where I have to take my leaves out first, put a little bit on, and then he drowns the rest of it. Whereas, I think it could maybe be the reverse.

JV: Well what about plate dressing instead of bowl dressing?

Francis: There’s too much dressing.

JV: But I mean what about dressing the salad when it’s on the plate rather than when it’s in the bowl.

Francis: I don’t know, we haven’t actually tried that method.

JV: You could try that. Serve yourself leaves and then dress to taste.

Francis: That sounds like an easy solution. I don’t know why we haven’t thought of that one.

JV: See I love this. I may be bringing some peace to your household Francis.

Francis: You could well be. It makes me hope for the dead of winter when there’s no salad so something needs to change.