Judy Garland's Favorite Salad Is Perfect For Summer Cookouts

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Best known for her starring role in "The Wizard of Oz," Judy Garland is a true American icon. The starry-eyed actor began her career as a child and signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) — the largest movie studio at the time — when she was just 13 years old. Her famous film was released four years later in 1939, propelling her to stardom. That same year, Garland was included in a recipe book compiled by Rex Lease and Kenneth Harlan, titled "What Actors Eat — When They Eat!" Her contribution was a light vegetable salad with a French dressing that we think works perfectly for summer events.

Garland claims she didn't like salads at all until her mom started making this recipe. The star's constant mention of her mom and apparent pride in the fact that she could make the salad herself if she were alone in the house reflects just how young she was when the book came out. She's right, of course, this salad is easy enough even for a teenager. It's also less intense than Marilyn Monroe's protein-heavy breakfast. The best part is that you probably have most of the ingredients already: two lettuce hearts, two cubed celery watercress, three grated carrots, two sliced tomatoes, quartered seeded olives, cold cooked green peas, and one chopped endive. The dressing is made with olive oil, vinegar, salt, sugar, fresh garlic, and a generous amount of paprika.

Although salads are usually a no-brainer (put the ingredients in a bowl and mix them), Judy Garland did have some specific instructions for making her recipe the right way. When making the dressing, she recommended putting everything in a bottle, but leaving the sugar for last since it works as a thickening agent. Then, you shake the contents and let the dressing set. Repeat this step two more times. Doing this will ensure that everything is mixed well. Garland was also particular about mixing the dressing and the salad, saying that you should forsake the wooden fork and spoon and use your hands instead. She believed that this made it easier to evenly spread the dressing and to avoid any dry pockets.

This recipe works for whenever you're craving a salad that isn't bland, or if you want to impress your guests with a tasty salad that has an interesting backstory. Try it out at your next cookout. It'll perfectly complement a burger bar that lets your guests choose exactly how they want their food, or light, breezy summer cocktails. The one note we would make is that if you're planning on serving this to guests and want to try the hand mixing technique, wash your hands very thoroughly. No one wants food mixed by unclean hands. Other than that, if it was good enough for Judy, it'll certainly be good enough for your guests.