Salads

[oblio]

I love salads, a big salad is lunch most days, but I am such a salad dressing hog. I will occasionally do balsamic and olive oil, which I like ok, but most of the time I go for the stupid ceasers/blue cheese/italian and I know it's sabotaging my attempt to eat healthier. My kroger used to have a greek dressing I loved that was no carbs and very few calories but they don't make it anymore. Anyone have any salad dressings (store bought or home made) that they love?

Also, what do you keep around to throw in? I keep a ziplock of shredded carrot, chopped broccoli and cauliflower to throw in, canned black olives, shredded/crumbled cheese, sunflower seeds, and nuts. Sometimes sun dried tomato, black beans, or I'll tear up some deli turkey. Any other things you all keep on hand for salad additions?

[merigayle]

You know what i like in a salad? this is weird. A scrambled egg cooked with a little soy sauce/tamari and put in there. Roasted red peppers are good too.

[picote]

Salads are my nemesis with weight loss! Seriously. We have several salads that we make and pre calorie tracking I always felt so virtuous after eating them as a meal. Now I realize they can use up almost my daily calorie allotment

I’ve gotten used to very vinegar or lemon juice heavy dressings. On my nightly side salad I now just have red wine vinegar and fruit. No oil at all.

When I’m not counting calories, I love olives, nuts and cheese on my salads. Also marinated artichokes, eggs, berries. My two favorites are steak salad with blue cheese and toasted nuts and Greek salad with feta, tomatoes, olives and grilled chicken.

Our Costco has a huge bag of ready to go cabbage slaw that includes carrots. We almost always have a bowl of it in the fridge marinating in a red wine vinegar based dressing.

[diablita]

I really like the Primal Kitchen line of dressings if I'm going to use one.  Faves are the Greek and Sesame Ginger flavors.

I'm pretty good about putting together salads that are mostly vegetables and lean protein (e.g., fish, seafood) + the occasional hard boiled egg.  For a filling dinner salad I'll sometimes add warm rice.

[Ice Cream]

I make my own yogurt vinaigrette German style. I find that store-bought salad dressings are too high in salt.

[witchypoo]

our local market sells a very good greek yogurt dressing which is flavored with harissa.  i have been using that almost exclusively.

[BonitaApplebum]

I love salads, but for some weird reason I really hate making them. If my house had a salad bar I'd be in heaven.

I can definitely make an entire meal out of a salad, I like lots of protein in mine.

[radial]

I'm also in the 'love to eat it but hate to make it' camp where salad is concerned.  Guess that's why I'm a fan of those pre-chopped salad kits.  I add some protein and then eat an entire bag as a meal. 

[picote]

I love salads, but for some weird reason I really hate making them. If my house had a salad bar I'd be in heaven.

I can definitely make an entire meal out of a salad, I like lots of protein in mine.

Me too. Luckily DH LOVES making salad, so he at least chops the lettuce. And he makes my spinach salad every night. But we have very non-overlapping salad preferences. He hates nuts and fruit of any kind in a salad and wants huge pieces of romaine.

[oblio]

I was doing the salad kits, but with as much salad as I eat I decided to get a tub of precut/prewashed greens and just put my own stuff on. Actually I eat a lot of salad because it feels very low labor to me! I'm very unlikely to cook anything but I'll throw a salad together easy peasy with the precut stuff. The salad kits are 3-4$ a piece and a tub of greens that makes probably 4 or 5 is 4-5$ and has more dark leafy greens than just cabbage and iceberg that the kits have.

I love harissa, I would love to find that dressing here!

[floridagal]

I was just lamenting salad making last night! 

As for the original post - is it bad to say I like bacon in mine? 

[radial]

I was just lamenting salad making last night! 

As for the original post - is it bad to say I like bacon in mine? 

No! 

[Ice Cream]

I buy radishes, cucumbers, carrots, etc., for salads and slice everything the same day, put in plastic bags, and store in the fridge for the following week.

[Magic Microbe]

I always want like 45 different veggies in mine so it takes forever to prep. 

Picote have you tried the artichoke hearts marinated in water instead? I buy them in cans at trader Joes.

Antag always complains about my salads because he says they are too big and take forever to eat...dude.. that is kind of the point!

[Ice Cream]

our local market sells a very good greek yogurt dressing which is flavored with harissa.  i have been using that almost exclusively.

I was interested until I saw the sodium content.   

[witchypoo]

given how little salt i eat, sodium content is not generally on my radar.

[merigayle]

given how little salt i eat, sodium content is not generally on my radar.

1! my blood pressure is so damn low that i am always told to eat more salt 

[radial]

My bp is variable depending on whether I'm behaving myself or not in the nutrition department.  Today it was 89/64.  I had to take it three times because the machine refused to believe it's beady little eyes.  Guess I'm behaving myself

[Ice Cream]

My bp is variable depending on whether I'm behaving myself or not in the nutrition department.  Today it was 89/64.  I had to take it three times because the machine refused to believe it's beady little eyes.  Guess I'm behaving myself

Mine is very variable. I could probably go to the doctor right now and get hypertension commorbidity; always have high blood pressure at the dr. office.  Dr. told me last time that I had 2 very high hypertension readings for the last 2 visits, and a 3rd one he would put me on medication.  When I measure at home, it's always normal.

[Run Amok]

My blood pressure is always super low in the morning so sometimes I will get a nurse who is like...are you ok? Did you drive here on your own? Can someone else drive you home? Hard workouts in the AM are also  a bad idea for me.

[radial]

Mine is very variable. I could probably go to the doctor right now and get hypertension commorbidity; always have high blood pressure at the dr. office.  Dr. told me last time that I had 2 very high hypertension readings for the last 2 visits, and a 3rd one he would put me on medication.  When I measure at home, it's always normal.

White coat syndrome.  I have it too, so when I go for my annual physical I just show the doc my numbers from home. 

[Rejaneration]

We have salads almost every day.  I love some combination of the following:
1) protein greens/super green mix etc
2) radishes - esp watermelon radish - we usually have them in the fridge
3) shitake mushrooms
4) nuts - either almonds or pecans. Also pepitos
5) roasted chicken. I buy one every week and we eat on it - for salads and tacos - all week.
6) boiled eggs - boil up 5-6 at a time and keep them in a bowl in the fridge
7) cauliflower
broccoli
9) bell peppers
10) baby carrots
11) tofu bites - ie air fried tofu or roasted - they are crispy/chewy, but not mushy.

Depending on the leftovers I have, I may throw in roasted veggies etc.

Dressing is never store bought. Generally Balsamic, olive oil and mustard.  The mustard takes it to another level.

Easy peasy.  I must have protein in it or I am hungry within the next 2 hours.

[BonitaApplebum]

Oh yeah, salad’s gotta have protein.

[Ice Cream]

White coat syndrome.  I have it too, so when I go for my annual physical I just show the doc my numbers from home. 

Strangely enough, it's normal at the cardiologist.

[oblio]

I forget radishes are a thing and I love them, I need to get some of those.

[ihop]

I love radishes!

[diablita]

me too.  Especially watermelon radishes.  I've been eating the heck out of them (even just for snacking) lately.

[BonitaApplebum]

Who here taught me the trick of slicing radishes (and other veggies like kohlrabi), then drizzling with olive oil and sprinkling salt & pepper to serve? So good.

[teetime]

We have a big salad almost every night with dinner, so no protein. But, I make tons of different dressings for them otherwise my kids just drown in ranch. Do you have a stick blender? For creamy (which it sounds like you like) I like to start with a base of yogurt, then a dollop of Honduran sour cream (for a rich mouth feel, olive oil would accomplish the same),  tons of fresh herbs, a chunk of garlic, lemon juice and/or a vinegar, good pinch of salt (not really a pinch in my house ... like a spoon), pinch of sugar and blitz.

Our standard is very boring ... greens, cherry tomatoes, bell pepper, cucumber. (This goes with grilled fish/chicken/chili whatever and usually a cooked/roasted veg and carb for the kids.)

A raw kale salad is awesome too. Slice the kale thinly, massage with salt and olive oil to soften, toss with dressing of garlic, lemon juice, tahini, salt, tiny bit of honey. Then add craisins and chopped nuts. Or bell pepper and avocado chunk.

[diablita]

Who here taught me the trick of slicing radishes (and other veggies like kohlrabi), then drizzling with olive oil and sprinkling salt & pepper to serve? So good.

Me.  LOVE me some kohlrabi, turnip, radish, etc that way.  And they look so good together on a plate.