I didn’t post much about my trip to Italy here on GreenLiteBites — most posts were reserved for TheUnworldlyTravelers and JustRoni. Here I like to archive my home kitchen adventures.

Surprisingly, I didn’t immediately come back inspired to re-create many of the amazing meals I ate there. I think they needed to stew in me for a bit because now I’m finding myself dreaming of some of the dishes I was lucky enough to experience.

One of my favorite meals was at the La Certosa Restaurant in Florence. Here’s some video footage of our dinner entertainment…

The woman in the red hat is my mom. I’m getting teary just thinking of that evening.

The meal we had started with an amazingly simple salad that I would have never pulled together on my own. Instead of dressing, we drizzled the Monastery’s own honey to bring the dish together. I loved it so much I bought a jar to bring home!

I don’t think I’ve come even close to capturing the salad as they served it, but my version is directly inspired by theirs. I remember the combination of raw cabbage, cheese, nuts and honey. Such simple ingredients that together create a tasty, satisfying dish.

I’ve made this 3 times using the same head of cabbage and plan on making it again for lunch, it’s that good. If you are a heavy dressing user this may be too dry for you. I love the touch of sweetness the honey brings to the cabbage. It’s perfect!

Here’s what I did…

Cut thin slices from a half of a head of green cabbage.

Pile it on a plate with the spinach and mix the two.

Grate the cheese. I’ve used both mozzarella and Monterey jack successfully. The key is to grate your own. The already grated stuff is coated to prevent sticking and it’s just not the same on this salad.

Top the greens with the shredded cheese.

Sprinkle the walnuts and dried cranberries on top.

Drizzle with the honey.

Enjoy!

Note: Here’s a behind-the-scenes shot of my “photo studio.” As you can see, it’s hard to hire good help these days. ;)