Hoda kotb’s upside-down salad | members only

When Hoda Kotb was a kid, she and her siblings always had a job at dinnertime: One of them would set the table, another would be in charge of clearing the table, and someone else would make

the salad. This is what Hoda would make when she was on salad duty. She’d build it from the bottom up: First, she’d make the vinaigrette and combine it in a salad bowl with avocado, mango,

cucumber, and tomatoes, letting everything mingle. Then, when ready to serve, she’d toss it with the lettuce and croutons. And to this day, it’s still Hoda’s go-to salad. “It sounds really

basic,” she says, “but those mangoes tossed in the balsamic — it’s like candy to me.” HODA’S UPSIDE-DOWN SALAD Serves 6 Prep time: 15 minutes INGREDIENTS _For the balsamic dressing_ ½ cup

extra-virgin olive oil ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar 1 large clove garlic, grated on a Microplane 1 teaspoon honey ¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard ¼ teaspoon kosher salt ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black

pepper _For the salad _ 2 avocados, diced 2 Champagne mangoes, diced 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved ½ English cucumber, sliced into half-moons 1 head iceberg lettuce, chopped into 1-inch

pieces 1 cup seasoned croutons DIRECTIONS  Make the balsamic dressing: In a screw-top jar, combine the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, honey, mustard, salt, and pepper, cover, and shake

vigorously to emulsify. Make the salad: In a large bowl, combine the avocados, mangoes, tomatoes, cucumber, and the dressing and toss to combine. Add the lettuce, then top with the croutons.

When ready to serve, toss the salad until all ingredients are evenly coated with the dressing. _Excerpted from the book _Today Loves Food: Recipes From America’s Favorite Kitchen_ by Emi

Boscamp, Katie Stilo, Debbie Cohen Kosofsky, and the Today Show Family and Friends. Photographs © 2025 by Johnny Miller. Published by Abrams._