Heather says:
Due to a short trip, I’ve consumed more fast food in the past 48 hours than I usually consume in a month and frankly I feel gross.
Yes, I could have planned better. I know this. I know you know this.
That said, now I’m in the mood for salads, but I’m not the least bit in the mood to make salads. Whenever I eat a big salad for dinner, I tend to circle the fridge like a vulture a few, short hours later. At that point, I’m cranky that I went to the effort of making a salad only to feel hungry again.
So, while I’m tearing leaves and pretending that it’ll tide me through to bedtime, I’d like to hear about your favorite salads. Just for reference, I’m talking about vegetable salads rather than their potato or pasta counterpoints. However, now that I think about it, I really could go for a good broccoli salad.
Personally, I love a good Caesar, but I’m also a sucker for spinach salad—have you ever had this spinach salad with candied bacon—or even a mixed green with a fruity vinaigrette.
In the summer I really like to prep a bunch of cucumbers by peeling them, scooping out the seeds, and then dicing them. I then dice bell peppers, it works best if you get the multi-colored ones, so you get the slightly different flavors, and finally, I halve grape tomatoes. Sure you could dice romas, if you want to, just be sure to scoop out all the seeds. You don’t want to have any of the pulp or watery bits in the veg mixture you just prepped.
Then I mix a quick Greek vinaigrette, this is a rough estimate: 2 parts extra virgin olive oil, one part lemon juice, one part white wine vinegar, then I add oregano, thyme, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. I stir that up really well and drizzle it over the vegetables and give it all a good shake. If I have a glass or plastic container, I use that, otherwise, it’s just a gallon Ziploc bag. (Be absolutely certain you seal that tightly, don’t ask.) That will keep for a few days and makes a great snack over some romaine, mixed baby greens, or even *gasp* iceberg. Toss on a few kalamata olives, some feta and you’re set.
You could turn it into a meal with some protein, maybe grilled chicken, fish. or a decent serving of chickpeas. (Or how about some falafel? I have got to get our falafel recipe up.)
What about you? I’m in the mood to read about food.
my favorite salad is from Five Loaves Cafe here is the description "Marinated Mushrooms, bleu cheese, sunflower seeds & warm potatoes over mixed greens" and i get their wild mushroom & soy dressing. its amazing
my favourite salad is from a Pampered Chef party I was at. It's called Thai Chicken Stir-fry Salad. It's basically baby spinach, cucumber, red pepper and broccoli slaw. Then chicken cubed and browned. Then you stir in some fresh basil and chopped peanuts and some of the dressing (which is creamy poppy seed dressing with garlic and fresh grated ginger root stirred in – SO good!) to the chicken. Then you toss it all together with the rest of the dressing. It's fantastic as a salad and then the next day I put the leftovers in wraps. Heather, If you want the actual recipe send me an email and I'll send it your way.
Can I request the recipe? This sounds great, especially if it works as a leftover too.
Personally I like the salads without the lettuce, lately. Baby portabellas, tomatos, carrots, and feta with greek vinaigrette. Yum! Or asparagus, mushrooms, watercress, and a curry-spiced vinaigrette.
I so LOVE chicken wings! Check out this salad…….. Buffalo Chicken Salad https://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet…
I am in love with a new dressing I make that's ridiculously simple. Strawberry preserves (I use whatever of our homemade jams have a bit left in the jar and just make it in the jar – so far blueberry, black raspberry and goldenberry have been delicious), balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. That's it. Shake well. Really good on a spinach/romaine salad with strawberries and feta with homemade seasoned croutons. Oh now I want a huge one. If I put enough cheese in I don't get that starving feeling that soon. And I usually mop up the extra dressing in the bowl with some crusty bread, so that helps too.
Apples, craisins, nuts of some sort (usually walnuts, but maybe pecans or peanuts if they are all I have), feta/gorgonzola/blue cheese crumbles with some spinach and romaine. Heaven.
I tend to do "unsalads" which are lettuce-free. Dinner often comes with a Roma tomato sliced on the diagonal and dusted with any combination of salt, pepper, Bragg's liquid aminos, parmesan cheese, basil, balsamic vinegar, chevre, or dulse. Avocado slices are also frequent sides, with salt and pepper, Braggs, salsa, a sweet wasabi sauce I make, or balsamic vinegar. Fresh spinach with chevre and garlic is popular, too.
When doing a lettuce-based salad, I usually throw on some of the following: pecans or walnuts, dried fruit, sliced fruit, cheese of just about any sort, sunflower seeds, pine nuts, pepitas, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, hardboiled eggs or a scrambled egg, lots of tomato, thin sliced onion, olives, lightly sauteed mushrooms, etc. To keep from getting the hungries so soon after eating, you need a little fat and a good bit of protein in your salad, or you'll undo it by snacking later.
Favorite: My homemade blue cheese dressing on a romaine/iceberg salad with picked beets, sliced red onion, mushrooms and green peppers. And bacon bits. Made from REAL bacon, Brian. 😉
Second favorite: Red Cabbage, Feta and Tomatoes salad with Cumin Dressing
Ditto what the others have said, if it's salad for dinner, it NEEDS some protein, be it meat, eggs, beans or nuts, or cheese. Or, a bit of several. Sometimes it's nicer to have it as a soup instead of in the salad. When I do that, I like to serve them as consecutive courses, not both at once.
And of course, good bread with it!
Tonight we had the last of the bruschetta from sunday with the rest of the baguette I bought yesterday: panzanella, yay! We also had other sunday leftovers: 1 large pork chop split between us, and roast veg. so it wasn't a salad only night for us.
Well, I don't have "a" salad to recommend, but some things I love on my salads, which are usually based on romaine lettuce, are fresh cilantro, kalamata olives, sun-dried tomatoes, crunchy vegetables like peppers and carrots…and I love love love goddess dressing. It's the best dressing I've ever tasted, and I only discovered it a year or so ago. Where was THAT all my life?
I forgot onions and tomatoes. There have to be onions at the very least, and I love the little plum tomatoes. Basically, I think our salads are kind of like Greek salads, or something like that.
I love salads. I love French endive, arugula, gem and romaine and I can’t stand iceberg lettuce.
I usually make Caesar salad or I take a big piece of Chevre cheese and heat it up, add walnuts and some honey and I’m good to go. It always depend on my mood what kind of vegetables I add but if I need something more meaty I blanch some broccoli or cauliflowers and add to my salads. Cabbage is also a good way of getting it to be more fulfilling.
I’m not much of a dressing person but for my Caesar I have to have a dressing made of anchovies, garlic (mince them), lemon and crème fraiche. Mix. Amount is dependant on taste but it’s delicious.
I’m going to have to write down all the salad ideas here. I love salads!
I make an awesome salad of cooked bowtie pasta, chopped grape tomatoes, bacon (from the bag) , finely shredded lettuce and just enough mayo to hold it together. Salt and pepper to taste. Make it early and let it get good and cold. Yummo!
My favourite salad is the one my gf calls a Super Salad.
Baby spinach, sweet peppers, cucumber, tomato, apple, old cheddar, ham… pretty much anything that we think will fit into it, but always some protein. Add some bread, and it's a good solid meal.
I'm with you… and my bf calls it "surprise salad." We have a salad for dinner pretty regularly, and my guy eats, but is still full after my salads. I put a bunch of stuff in it to make it filling and interesting but still keep it light feeling…spinach, red pepper, green pepper, kalamata olives — that's the base — then whatever is in season or in my fridge gets added — strawberries, artichokes, green beans (lightly cooked but cooled), portabello mushroom, cucumbers, grapes, mandarin oranges, some type of cheese, etc. Adding a protein will help with feeling satisfied, you don't need a lot. Fill your belly to fullness and you'll find that it will keep you satisfied.
i really like a salad i got from, i think, cooking light magazine. arugula with canned tuna, white beans (also canned), and a couple of other vegetables, use whatever you have on hand. i think it called for tomatoes, but my husband doesn't like them so i used artichokes instead and that was tasty. the dressing that it called for was very light and complemented it well, olive oil with lemon juice, salt, pepper, and a bit of honey mustard. because of the tuna and white beans it was very filling and i didn't find myself reaching for other stuff later.
my husband does a really amazing cold farro salad with baked tofu hunks, avocado, halved cherry tomatoes, torn spinach leaves and chopped cucumber hunks (along with just a quickie home made vinaigrette) that absolutely TASTES like summer to me. with the protein and the whole grains, it's very filling (and you stay full!). chopped fresh mozzarella would also be good stirred in.
If i'm having salad as dinner it usually includes some bread along with the veggies and protein–I was baking regularly before it got so hot, and I'd save ends and stale bread to make some quick "croutons" in a skillet with a little oil and chopped garlic. A fave winter combination was roasted (or even jarred) beets, mesclun, goat cheese, toasted pumpkin seeds, and a quick vinaigrette mixed with the chewy bread chunks. In summer, I go for panzanella, with bread, tomatoes, olives, cucumbers, basil, and mozzerella or smoked tofu.
grilled chicken on a bed of lettuce, cucumbers, & carrots w/ a light sprinkle of cheese and olive oil
One of my favorite salads starts with baby spinach. Add sliced strawberries, blanched slivered almonds, dried cranberries and serve with a slightly sweet poppyseed dressing or raspberry vinaigrette. So fresh and tasty!
I will buy a salad from the cafeteria or a restaurant, but I rarely make them. MY mom makes a really good tuna macaroni salad, and chicken torelini salad, oh she's visiting i should get her to make that. I like bacon, egg, cheese, and nuts on my salad, veggies only makes me hungry later.
I have a favorite summer salad. Roasted red bell pepper, steamed green beans and cooked corn cut off the cob, dressed with an olive oil/ lemon juice/ garlic dressing. It's fantastic. The three vegetables balance each other really well. It takes a little work, but I make it a few times every summer because I just love it.
Oh, maybe I should specify I roast the pepper myself – don't use jarred here. With all fresh vegetables it's really great.
My favorite is chicken, cheese, apples and/or grapes, with a poppyseed dressing.
I also love something I found at SparkPeople. Chickpeas and feta with a greek dressing.
I’ve been making this salad for a few years now and I looove it. Super quick and easy too… Cube and cook some chicken with garlic and onion powder. I burn the heck out of it because the crunchy brown crust is where all the flavor is….and because I refuse to buy non-stick cookware. Anyway, bed of spring mix with all the nasty purple junk that tastes like ear-wax picked out, apples chunked up, walnuts, gargonzola cheese, mandarin oranges, craisins, and avacado chunks. I put the hot chicken on the cheese and stir it up til the oranges squish a little and the avacado smears. This acts as the dressing. Soooo flippin’ good!
I love spinach salad with mandarin oranges, thinly sliced or diced granny smith apples and pecan halves drizzled with a dark balsamic vinegar or a vinegrette (sp?)
I also just love a big meaty loaded with veggie salad… like… spring mix lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, grape tomatoes, carrots, squash, zucchini, mushrooms, but the two ingredients that "make" it for me are red onion and dried cranberries. YUm!