State and National News

Tonight, when Ryan Seacrest announces who has won the 11th season of American Idol — when the confetti falls and Jennifer Lopez sheds a perfect dewy teardrop and Randy Jackson's thought bubble explodes with "Dude, that was a moment moment MOMENT" and Steven Tyler purses his immortal lips in that vampire-connoisseur way he does, smelling the perfume of another sweet young victory — I will be out to dinner with friends, far from the agony and ecstasy finalists Jessica Sanchez and Phi

On today's show, we follow a couple guys who run a pizza shop in New Orleans as they buy their first Facebook ad. We visit a business in New Jersey that sells Facebook "likes" in bulk. And we check in with a business school professor who explains what Facebook would have to do to live up to its valuation — which, even after its post-IPO fall, is still roughly $90 billion.

For More, see our stories from last week:

There are many ways to find a lost or stolen cellphone. You can call the number and see who answers; you can use "Find My Phone" apps that track your phone's GPS. Or, if your camera phone automatically posts photos to your account in "the cloud," you can simply watch your photo feed and look for clues in the strange new images that start popping up. Just be prepared to see anything — like scenes from a cruise ship.

"Salads emphasizing fresh herbs are vigorous and fill the mouth with big, robust flavors," writes Deborah Madison in Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (Broadway 1997), from which this is adapted. By all means, substitute whatever greens and herbs you like or have on hand. Top with herb blossoms if you can get them. Madison says this would be "an exuberant accompaniment" to a cheese souffle.

Makes 3 to 4 servings

2 cups lettuce leaves

It seems there's not a month that goes by that Maricopa (Ariz.) County Sheriff Joe Arpaio isn't involved in one controversy or another.

As we've reported, Arpaio is already facing a federal civil rights lawsuit.

But now there's news that Arpaio is using public money on his quest to investigate President Obama's birth certificate. Both the Arizona Republic and Honolulu Star Advertiser report that Arpaio sent his deputy, Brian Mackiewcz, to Hawaii in part because of what Arpaio said were "security issues," related to the investigation.

April Bloomfield, from whose book A Girl and Her Pig (Ecco 2012) this recipe is adapted, calls this hands-on salad "the claw" because it involves sticking your hands in the bowl and "smooshing and bruising" the ingredients to really bring out the flavors. The idea is to smoosh the cheese just enough that some of it gets creamy and thickens the dressing while the rest holds its shape — what Bloomfield calls "little nuggets of salty sharpness." Because radishes and butter are a classic duo and radishes are at their peak, this is a perfect spring salad.

About a year ago, my son came home from New York all excited about raw kale salads — the new hot thing. It had never occurred to me to eat kale raw, and I found it delicious and refreshing. Because kale is tough, however, you have to remove the woody ribs and chop the leaves fine. Then I discovered baby red Russian kale. It's all over this year's farmers markets, and while I still take off the bigger stems and chop a bit, it's not nearly as onerous a task as with the adult kale. Use walnuts instead of pine nuts, vinegar rather than lemon juice, whatever you like.

This salad, adapted from Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Every Day (10 Speed Press 2011), is perfect when strawberries are at their peak, which would be now. When the season is over, throw in a few dried strawberries. Strawberries and balsamic vinegar are a perfect couple. Substitute good goat cheese for the Parmesan if you prefer.

Makes 4 servings

1 shallot, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Scant 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, preferably aged