if my salads are stripped-down, my salad dressings are downright naked. In fact, you can barely call them dressings at all. All I'm using is olive oil and salt. No vinegar. No lemon juice.

It's not that I have anything against acid. I just find that it's usually unnecessary; most salads include a dose of acid already, whether it's hiding in the tomatoes, the goat cheese, or the pickled red onions.

So I dress my salads with olive oil alone. I try to use a good one, one with a really earthy flavor, and maybe some spice. I pour it on generously, and follow with a healthy sprinkle of crunchy salt. I don't toss, because I've found that the salad tosses itself as I pick my way through it with my fork.