Did I... did I just eat a salad?

I really, truly, seriously just ate my first salad in AGES. If you hadn't guessed, I'm not much of a salad eater. I tend to find lettuces other than iceberg to be very bitter.

I was searching 'round the fridge to see what I could come up with that I would like... the first thing that came to mind was "ranch dressing! yum!". Then I looked at the calories. Hmmm... how about italian? Again, calories (though 50 less than ranch). Finally, I decided on a little bit (about a tbsp) of sour cream with a few tbsps of salsa. I put a little less than an ounce of marble cheddar cheese in there too, which I was planning to do regardless of dressing. I love cheese in salads, it's the only way I can stomach them.

It was a non-iceberg based salad mix, I don't think it even had any iceberg in it. Oddly enough, I enjoyed it. Even more oddly enough, I don't feel the urge to eat more. One thing I noticed, though, was that something in there was very bitter. Eck.

So now that I know I can stomach a salad every now and again, I need some ideas as to some yummy toppers. I love cheese, onions (red or green), and those salad shakers you can get in your local grocery store. I just don't really know what other things I could put in there. When it comes to salad, creativity is not my forte. I've heard of putting walnuts or cranberries in them.. how would that work? Would you not put any dressing or what?

I feel weird with so many questions about a simple salad

Congrats on the salad experience! Sometimes it takes a while to learn to love them. A few combos I like are...

Thinly sliced red onions + thinly sliced red bell pepper + mushrooms + olives + whatever else I have on hand. I like this with almost any dressing.

Balsamic vinegarette + thinly sliced pears (or apples) + walnuts (or pecans) + dried cranberries + a little bit of soft goat cheese

I make my own balsamic vinegarette. I start with a bit of olive oil, beat in a bit of mustard with a fork, add a drizzle of honey and some salt and pepper and then whisk in balsamic vinegar until it tastes good to me. It takes a couple minutes and you can make any sized portion you want.

Regarding the bitterness - my least favorite thing in salad mixes are what I call the "chokers" - those weird looking branchy things that taste bitter and get stuck in your throat when you try to chew them. I try to look for salad mixes without them, or I avoid eating them. But some people love it. Wish I could remember what it is called.

Apples are great in a salad... so are grapes or fresh berries. Their sweetness helps to balance out the lettuce. I won't eat radiccio (the red thing that looks like cabbage) because it's very very bitter, but the rest of the salad mix is usually okay.

Original Post by rachelcc:

Regarding the bitterness - my least favorite thing in salad mixes are what I call the "chokers" - those weird looking branchy things that taste bitter and get stuck in your throat when you try to chew them. I try to look for salad mixes without them, or I avoid eating them. But some people love it. Wish I could remember what it is called.

That's exactly what I was talking about! Those are SO GROSS! I can't stand them. Ugh.

I haven't found a vinagrette that I enjoy, unfortunately. I might have to try your idea, just to see. I'm always open to trying things at least once.

Original Post by ladyfirelyght:

Original Post by rachelcc:

Regarding the bitterness - my least favorite thing in salad mixes are what I call the "chokers" - those weird looking branchy things that taste bitter and get stuck in your throat when you try to chew them. I try to look for salad mixes without them, or I avoid eating them. But some people love it. Wish I could remember what it is called.

That's exactly what I was talking about! Those are SO GROSS! I can't stand them. Ugh.

I haven't found a vinagrette that I enjoy, unfortunately. I might have to try your idea, just to see. I'm always open to trying things at least once.

 

Seriously, what IS that crap?! I love iceberg, spinach, romaine, etc, but I don't want any damn weeds in my salad, thank you! :)

 

I'll basically eat anything on lettuce, but these are a couple of my current favs:

Chicken, strawberries, cucumber, green beans (I Don't use any dressing.  Since the strawberries are cut up the night before, they kinda' get strawberry juice all over everything, so you really don't need any).

Spinach, red pepper, cucumber, grated carrot, and green beans

Some higher calorie items I also like, but rarely use because of the cals:

Candied walnuts

Dried cherries/cranberries

Kalmalata Olives

Marinated Artichoke Hearts 

 

He he. I'm glad I'm not the only one who hates the chokers. Why do they put those in there?

I regularly make salads with little to no leafy greens. For example, I love tomato, artichoke heart, red bell pepper, cucumber, and chick pea salads. Yum!

Original Post by kaffwynn:

I'll basically eat anything on lettuce, but these are a couple of my current favs:

Chicken, strawberries, cucumber, green beans (I Don't use any dressing.  Since the strawberries are cut up the night before, they kinda' get strawberry juice all over everything, so you really don't need any).

Spinach, red pepper, cucumber, grated carrot, and green beans

Some higher calorie items I also like, but rarely use because of the cals:

Candied walnuts

Dried cherries/cranberries

Kalmalata Olives

Marinated Artichoke Hearts 

 

I never thought of putting strawberries in a salad. I can't seem to wrap my head around that...

I've tried olives love that. But I hate cucumbers and can just barely tolerate carrots. *shudder* I really want to like vegetables! I DO! I swear! Why do so many of them have to be so vile?

I like to use baby spinach leaves as a base and add mixed greens to it.  Always add a serving of protein/meat (usually choose 2 items, just half serving of each), I like tuna, chicken, beans (black or kidney), turkey bacon, hard boiled egg, turkey or salmon.  Also add a fat and my fav is feta or gorganzola cheese, could also choose an ounce of nuts.  Plus at least one fruit and 3 veggies, love dried cranberries but they are high cal so be careful, tangerines are good and someone else mentioned apples or strawberries, my veggies are usually mushrooms, red onions, green olives, jalepenos, green peppers, and green onions.  Top it off with a fat free rasberry vinaigrette with a splash of balsamic.  There are some pretty good low fat dressings out there too.  If you like ranch you could take fat free mayo and mix in a packet of ranch mix.

Also a salad hater here.  Still can't stomach them.  Yuck.

Also, on a side note, salads don't have to be boring and made of just lettuce.  You can take 2 oz whole wheat pasta, add black olives, tomatoes, red pepper, olive oil, parmeasan cheese, egg whites, celery, broccoli, crumbled feta and minced spinach and add your choice of ham, turkey, chicken, beans, turkey bacon or salmon...really good and filling.

Regular lettuce bores the beejeeberz out of me. I always make my salad base baby spinach (no bitterness at all!) and I feel like maybe its got some more nutritional value than iceberg.

Strawberries on spinach is a WONDERFUL combo.

Basically all fruit works in a salad too. So just try mixing together combinations of "fresh" foods that you do like the taste of and call it a "salad".  You'd be amazed at what foods work together!

My favourite lunch is "hot meat on salad" which basically means I take leftover meat from the night before and heat it up and then dump it on my salad. It melts my grated cheese on my cold salad (spinach + other veggies - peppers are a favourite! tomato & cucumbers too) and then I don't even use a dressing because the juicy meat doesn't make me feel like i need one.

Speaking of lunch... it is that time!!!

Happy Salad Testing/Eating!

I just never really thought of veggies and fruits melding together in one dish! I'll have to try some stuff out.

Talking about the pasta salad reminds me of this one that I had in April. Oh man, it was delish! It had pasta, artichoke hearts, red peppers, olives, and crumbled feta cheese with just a sprinkling of italian dressing. I want some now.

We'll see what I come up with for today's salad!

Feta is such a great option bc it has lower calories per ounce and has more flavor so you don't need as much.  I buy the reduced fat athenos feta in a block, then I cut the block in 8 "cubes" so that the servings are already portioned out, 70 cal and 6 fat and it is actually a good amount too...

I like putting mandarin oranges on my salads. Yummy.

KUDOS! I had the same reaction when i poured, drank, and kept down a glass of apple juice last month. I havent had apple juice since i was a kid, and it is well known by my whole family that i dont touch the stuff! But now i'm knockin' it back like no body's business. It's amazing how your mind and body adapt to new needs.

Original Post by alibuch:

I like putting mandarin oranges on my salads. Yummy.

How exactly do you eat a salad with mandarin oranges? What types of greens, veggies, and dressings?

I think the chokers are called Frisee!! or Frisse...i dont know, pronounced Fri-zay.  I agree though, in forkful you can have a nice clean lettuce bite and then in another forkful you get this weedy branchy piece that looks like it was mowed up haha.  I tend to stay away from lettuce mixes that have Frisee.

My salads are usually a mix of baby spinach leaves and baby arugula.  Does anyone else think that arugula is the most awesome lettuce ever?

I put everything in salads. Cut up lunch meats, left over cold chicken, tuna. Any vegi you can think of I add to mine. Various fruits. Walnut or sunflower seeds. I am not a big dressing person, 1tbsp of any dressing to 4cups of salad.

oh, and try butter lettuce if you aren't too keen on others.