creating a healthy lifestyle for mothers and women everywhere

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Secrets of a Salad

 

For lunch today I made a salad.

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Its been a long time since I have had an actual salad for lunch.

Weird? But yes.

It was delicious. And this needs to happen more often.

But let me tell you why making salads are so dang hard sometimes.

You have to wash your veggies.

Spin your lettuce

Then you have to chop that all up.

You have to decide if you want a sweet and fruity salad or a tangy veggie one.

Decide on a protein- Chicken ? Turkey? Tuna? or Eggs?

You have to freaking cook and cut that to.

It can take a lot time for just a measly salad. Who has time for all that? AND clean all the dishes in the meantime.

But do you want to know a trick? I’ll let you in on my little secret….

Do ALL of this once.. and then some. Just do it on your day off. Cut all your bell peppers, cucumbers, lettuce (or just buy the fancy pre-washed lettuce), mushrooms, cook your chicken, boil eggs.Whatever else you want to use.

Store it in containers, then come Breakfast, lunch or dinner you have all your veggies chopped and stored.

I don’t know about you but for some reason veggies are the hardest for me to get in during the day. Fruit just seems to be my go-to once I open the fridge, but if I have my veggies cut and ready to go it makes it much easier to prepare my meals.

Lunch was ready in 2.2.

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You want to know what else.. I threw some frozen green beans on this plate and cooked them in the microwave for a few before topping the greens on.

AND I found a new favorite dressing..

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I have been using the balsamic vinaigrette made by the same brand but decided to switch it up. I also have the ranch but that one is not my fav. I also use a bit of olive oil for some healthy fat.

When you make a salad make sure it includes the following

  • Lettuce. (I’m sure that’s a given) But make sure its not Iceberg. Shoot for Spinach, romaine, kale or a mixture.
  • Veggies. I don’t care what kind, give it color and it will make you happy- I promise. Even fruits, if you want a little sweeter salad.
  • Protein- Chicken, Tuna, Turkey, Tofu- I have even used cottage cheese as my dressing and called it good.
  • Healthy fat: Avocado, olive oil, pecans, sliced almonds.

If it includes all of these it will sustain you a good while.

So now you know what I’m having for lunch all week. Smile

After I devoured that beast, I opened the fridge and grabbed an apple.

Cool.

Quote of the day:

Via coach lemon.

“Great self esteem comes from great self control.”

 

Q. What is your favorite salad topper?

Q. When you open your fridge what do you almost always reach for? A fruit? or veggie?

9 comments:

  1. I’ve been enjoying wedge salads lately. I a little bit of apple or pear, walnuts , cherry tomatoes, shallots and some feta cheese.. YUMM

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  2. Agree! Having everything ready to mix always makes it so much easier & better! Honey dijon or honey mustard..always my favorite dressings! I also like using salsa. And I usually reach for either apples or baby carrots

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  3. Great salad tips. I've been looking for a good dressing. I'll have to try yours. I probably reach for fruit more, but I'm trying to change that to veggies now.

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  4. I'm loving garbage bowl style salads for dinner lately- TJ's turkey meatballs and parm cheese are great toppers!

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  5. I have no idea how you eat the calorie free dressing, doesnt it taste horrible? I also think it kind of brings down the health factor of the dish as it is filled with chemicals. Do you think that the Walden Farms dressing kind of discount the fact that you are trying the include "healthy fats" ??

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    1. lindsay- Walden farms dressing is actually really good, I was hesitate at first but when I picked it up and checked out the ingredients I was surprised to see simple, real ingredients-- no additives or chemicals. mainly vinegars and spices! It isn't inculded as a "healthy fat" Thats why Ill toss some almond slivers or a bit of olive oil on my salad ;) give it a try! my fav. is balsamic but the honey dijon is pretty good ;)

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  6. Love your tips! Pre-cutting veggies! Perfecto! And I love Walden Farms dressing! They are gluten free, sugar free and yummy! My favorite right now is the Balsamic! Love you Candice, thank you for being excellent in everything you do! Your blog is a blessing to me!

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    1. Thank you so much!! You are so sweet! Thanks for reading!

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