“What is a waldorf, anyway? A walnut that’s gone off?”

For many people, it’s impossible to think of Waldorf salad without remembering the Fawlty Towers episode of the same name, which sees neurotic English hotelier Basil Fawlty (John Cleese) confronted with an impatient and shouty American guest who demands a salad he has never heard of.

After Basil’s first attempt to dodge the request, claiming the kitchen is fresh out of waldorfs, the guest and his wife inform him of the recipe, shouting “celery, apple, walnuts, grapes—in a mayonnaise sauce!” in his direction several times when he is slow to produce the salad. When Basil fails to find all the ingredients and goes to unreasonable lengths to put the blame on his (absent) chef, the guest becomes more and more enraged and, as often happens when Basil is involved, the situation degenerates into a public shouting match. Try to find the episode if you haven’t seen it, and discover how it happens that Basil himself orders the elusive salad by the end.

As Basil’s wife informs him during the episode, the salad is named for a hotel—more specifically, the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City, where maître d’hôtel Oscar Tschirky invented the dish in 1896 for a charity ball.

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Now you can join in on the fun and make a Waldorf salad of your own! It’s a salad that everyone always likes and also the perfect dish to bring to a picnic or potluck Easter brunch, as I confirmed a few weeks ago. And the shouting match is optional.

Waldorf salad

Serves 4 to 6 people

• 3 red-skinned apples, cored and chopped
• 2 cups red seedless grapes, sliced in half
• 2 cups celery, thinly sliced
• 2 cups chopped, lightly toasted walnuts
• Lettuce, for serving (optional)
• 3/4 cup vegan mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Begin by cutting the apple, celery and grapes into bite-sized pieces. Combine together in a large salad bowl.

Next, toast your walnuts, allow to cool, and then roughly chop.

Now prepare the sauce by mixing the mayonnaise with the lemon juice and salt.

Add the walnuts to the salad bowl, spoon the sauce over the top and stir until evenly coated.

Serve individual portions on fresh lettuce leaves, if you like.

And there you have it! A Waldorf salad that will satisfy even the most demanding American that visits your hotel. 🙂

Variations: substitute raisins for the grapes (or use in addition), experiment with different types of nuts, use plain yogurt in place of the mayonnaise.