Sarasota's Fresh Crunchy Creamy Celery Salad

This is just a nice twist on a celery salad. I would love to say this is my recipe, but I can't. This is from a small Bed and Breakfast in North Carolina. The Owner / Chef was nice enough to share her recipe with me, and had many other recipes that looked wonderful, but this is the only one I asked for. Unfortunately, the Bed and Breakfast is no longer there and the owner can't be contacted. She was a fantastic cook. The cherries with the combination of the pecans and the creamy dressing, just make it a perfect combination. I love to serve this with a honey roasted chicken, just something light and simple. Enjoy it!

• Ready In: 15 mins
• Serves: 4
• Yields: 4 Salad Servings

Ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 cups celery, diced (don't throw out those leaves)
• 2⁄3 cup  baby peas, thawed (frozen works best)
• 2⁄3 cup dried cherries
• 2  scallions, diced (whites and greens)
• 6  tablespoons fresh parsley, fine chopped
• 3  tablespoons  chopped pecans (I prefer to toast mine)

• Dressing

• 3  tablespoons mayonnaise
• 3  tablespoons plain yogurt
• 3  teaspoons lemon juice
•  salt
•  pepper

• Garnish

•  celery, leafs chopped fine

Directions

1. Pecans -- In a small dry saute pan, add the pecans and bring to medium heat and toast for just a couple of minutes. Don't let them burn, they literally take, 1-2 minutes. Remove and set to the side.
2. Salad -- Just add all the ingredients in a medium size bowl and toss well to combine. Garnish with the chopped celery leaves.
3. Serve -- Just ENJOY! Try a simple roasted chicken and some hearty whole grain bread to along with this simple salad.