Salad is a mixture of foods, usually including vegetables or fruits, occasionally with a dressing or sauce, occasionally nuts or croutons and sometimes with the addition of meat, fish, pasta or cheese. Salad is often served as an appetizer before a larger meal.The word "salad" comes from the French salade of the same meaning, which in turn is from the Latin salata, "salty", from sal, "salt", (See also sauce, salsa, sausage).

I've translated the guidelines from "lo spicchio d'aglio" on of the best Italian websites about cooking. Have a look and most importantly have fun trying it!

Different regions different habits. Different tastes too. The Italians are practically brought up on Pizza, Pasta and Lasagna only while for Americans the equivalents are Big Macs, Whoppers, Marshmallows, Steaks and for Californians and Mexicans maybe Nachos, Tacos, Salads, Red Beans and Burritos. There are strange tastes out there as well....

The number one Italian restaurant in NYC recently came out with a pasta sauce, and let me just say it lives up to its name. We put Il Mulino to the test and made everything from pasta to salad dressing with their line of products. We had friends doing shots of their olive oil and balsamic vinegar by the end of the night– this stuff is that good.