Florida Marlins Summer Salad by H. Wayne Huizenga - from "Munchin' With the Marlins Cookbook" (1995)

RECIPE

1 lb. torn spinach, freshly washed and drained

1 can drained mandarin oranges

1 cup alfalfa sprouts

generous sprinkle of sunflower seeds

Dressing

2 tbsp. cider vinegar

3 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/4 cup honey

1 tsp. salt

1 small onion, chopped

2 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 cup oil

Arrange salad ingredients in a large salad bowl for tossing or make individual salads.  Keep salad refrigerated until served.  Blend all ingredients in blender for 30 seconds.  Serves 6.

Born in 1993, the Florida Marlins' early days were all about optimism and teal.  Teal hats, teal pinstripes, teal on all their merchandise.

The Marlins joined the team cookbook club in 1995 with Munchin' With the Marlins, a nice collection of recipes from players and personnel.  Then-owner Wayne Huizenga offered up this recipe for a summer salad.  Huizenga came from a family of businessmen and was best known as the man behind Blockbuster Video and AutoNation.  He had a hand in three sports franchises in the Sunshine State, owning the Miami Dolphins and bringing both the Florida Panthers and Florida Marlins into existence as their first owner.

As owner of the Marlins, Huizenga assembled the club that won the 1997 World Series.  Then, like so many baseball owners, he cried poor and dismantled the championship team in a "fire sale".  The 1998 Marlins went 54-108 and were the first club to lose 100 games a year after winning a World Series.  Not long after, Huizenga sold the club.

The ingredients for this salad are easy to throw together and you won't cry poor after assembling them.  The mandarins add a burst of Florida sunshine.  Can't go wrong with this one.