Pimp My Salad

Ok, I have one foot back on the wagon after returning from my holiday, the other one dragging behind trying to get to the battenburg cake. But I am suffering a bout of being unmotivated to prepare my nice healthy foods.

So, bored of lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes, and too skint to have lobster and cashew nuts, what salads do you like to make for yourself..........?

 I have a very sweet tooth (curse) so things like yellow peppers are good.

For sweetness you could always add some fruit into your salad as well. Raisins or other dried fruits work great. Oranges. Apple. Whatever you want! Girl, try anything and be creative. Even if it sounds weird it may taste great! :)

I LOVE a mixed green salad with fat free raspberry viniagrette, walnuts, died cranberries, and feta cheese. YUM! If I'm having it for dinner I'll put some fakey chicken on top (don't eat real meat) and its so good. I go sparingly on the walnuts, feta and crans, just a tablespoon of each, but they add so much flavor!

The best salad I ever had (at a restaurant even):

Herb grilled chicken breast

Heaping mound of baby greens

Sliced apples

Bleu cheese crumbles

Candied pecans

Raspberry viniagrette

Yeah, the candied pecans really pack on the cals, but this is the best salad I've ever had.  I sometimes order the "healthier" version by leaving out the pecans (but it's hard to resist them....)

For a homemade salad, I recommend dried fruit, or a fruit based fat free viniagrette for sweetness.  Other great add ins for a different salad:  sweet corn and black beans with salsa for a southwestern theme.

Okay....now I want a salad for lunch!  :-)

on edit:  Great thread title!  ;-)

i love grapes in salad. How about some Chicken? or Tuna? sweetcorn, apple, mmm

One of my favs is similar to cupid's, but it's with spinach and in addition to cranberries I add sliced strawberries. This is good with a simple dressing of balsalmic vinegar and olive oil. Add lots of black pepper because the pepper brings out the sweetness in the strawberries. And when having a vitamin-C rich fruit in a salad, it's best to go with spinach because then you get the double-bang of an iron-rich veggie paired with vitamin-C, which boosts your uptake of the iron.

You can also go very simple for a side-salad - spinach, red onion, strawberries - This goes well with a homemade honey-mustard dressing, you can even warm it up a little in the microwave, and it'll gently wilt the spinach and bring out the flavors. I love this side salad for easter, along with ham and asparagus.

You said you're sick of cukes and tomatoes, but here's the salad I've been having this week: baby greens, cukes, roasted corn (we made extras on Monday when we were grilling and I shave it right off the cob), tomatoes, capers, nicoise olives, and fresh mozzorella. Balsalmic vinegar dressing. This same combo is excellent also with shrimp - the capers and the shrimp go well together, IMO.

A few weeks back I was on a binge with: arugula (nice peppery flavor for a change of pace), pistachios, avocado, twist of lemon, olive oil. This is a pretty salad, everything is green! And doesn't taste like the same-old/same-old.

Other salad toppers I like include grilled asparagus or green beans. I actually buy frozen haricot verts (sp?), the multi-colored kind. Looks pretty on a salad. Goes well with tuna mixed with a bit of yogurt.

A salad I purchase on my grocery shopping days - when I don't have time for lunch - is spinach, toasted almonds, goat cheese, red onions, and blueberries in a blueberry vinegrette.

Toasted pinenuts are also a great addition to any salad. I love toasted pinenuts!! Goes well with broccoli, feta cheese, and tons of fresh basil.

Blue cheese is great, if you like it, goes particularly well paired with carmelized onions and poached or grilled pears. Mmmmmmm! This is actually great on top of a pizza, not just a salad. You can also add figs to this combo (or fig jam instead of tomato sauce).

How's that for pimping? :-)

Grapes reminded me!!!

Here's a favorite salad that I get at a restuarant: it's called the God Salad: salad greens, grapes, beets, red onion, tomato (optional). You can use canned beets. There's some protein in there somewhere but I can't remember what now... but the interesting thing is the grapes/beet combo.

I love my salad with a mix of lettuces, cukes, a colorful assortment of peppers, then lots of red onions and then avocado.  I top with Olive Oil & Vinegar and pepper.  The avocado really adds to the salad, brings in some creamy so it mimics the feel of a creamy dressing, almost.  I have been eating this at least once a day for the past 6 weeks and have yet to tire of the taste, although sometimes I use a red wine vinegar to change it up.  Or add fresh grilled veggies.

I used to hate onions.  Now it's my favorite thing, especially a grilled red onion with a touch of olive oil & soy sauce.  Yum.

I love kidney beans and chickpeas in a chicken salad.

For something sweet, dried cranberries and raisins are good too.

I have a salad just about everyday...Lots of baby spinach...yellow squash or eggplant(so sweet raw) radishes, green pepper, portabella mushrooms, sometimes grapes, sometimes pineapple, sometimes apple, sometimes spaghetti squash, sometimes  baked sweet potato(or raw is good too) topped with either fresh grilled shrimp, a can of low sodium tuna, roasted chicken breast, grilled scallops...whatevr protein I have available...sometimes I add a bit of edamame...Dressing is usually just fresh squeezed lemon and a dash of pepper...brings out all the veggie flavors...

Hmmmm I think it's time to eat!

I love this thread!!!

I wish I loved spinach and beets :(

I do eat the spinach, but I really DON'T love it.

I work at an East of Chicago and I abuse the hell out of the salad bar and the stock in the kitchen.

My usual salad;

Lettuce mix
Cottage cheese (don't knock it 'til you try it!)
Seasoned, grilled chicken chunks
Banana peppers
Diced tomatoes
Green peppers
Onion
Parmesan cheese
Light Italian dressing

And whenever I get sick of that, or if I'm low on calories;

Lettuce mix
Cottage cheese (.. it really is delicious.)
Boneless chicken chunks
Bacon bits
Mushrooms
Onion
Cheddar cheese
Fat-free ranch dressing.

My pizza salad is still undergoing perfection..

I like cut-up chunks of dill pickle in my salad.

And grape halves.

And blueberries.

Yep, I am weird.

_____

=^..^= MOLLY (Have you had your pickle today?)

Have you also thought about where you're putting your salad?  Make a taco salad and throw it in a tortilla bowl.  It's added calories, but salads can be so low in calories it might actually benefit you, especially if you're the type that has issues with getting enough calories.

I've been tiring of salads at work lately, and as many variations as I can find to make them, sometimes it seems like a chore to eat them.  My fiance, the darling little inspiration he is, was practicing making a calzone, so we sent one without anything in it through the oven, cut it in half, pulled it open, and stuffed it with our salads.  It was more substantial, and kept me fuller, longer, and was a new spin on a salad that was very welcome.

canned mandarin orange slices rock my salads.

with chicken and whatever else you like. i love a peanut dressing with the oranges but for lower calories and no fake syrupy gross diet dressing i opt for naturally fresh's ginger dressing available in the fridge section with the lettuce at my grocery store.  nothing fake in it and very flavorful.    it's 70 calories for two whole tablespoons which goes a long way.  i end up using less than that.  i can exist on grilled steak or chicken in mixed baby greens with that dressing on it.  very low cal and delicious.  :)

I love Greek salads (tomato, onion, cucumber, feta cheese dressed with olive oil and vinegar).

if you like sweet try this

strawberries, mandarin oranges and blueberries with light poppyseed dressing

it's very yummy

For a salad sort of thing as a main meal for lunch or dinner, i would eat:

Two slices of ham
Hard boiled egg sliced up
lettuce and tomato
extra light mayo
Cous Cous!
a nice crunchy roll too!

My favorite salad:

spinach

carrots

mushrooms

black olives

hardboiled egg

cheese

bacon

tomatoes

orange pepper

cucumber

. . . basically, I start with spinach and put whatever I have around on it.  for dressing I either use the salad spritzers (couple of sprays) or vinegar and oil.  I also put random spices on it also (Ms. Dash italian version is good on salads). 

 

Man, all the other salad ideas sound really good!  I'm definately going to have to try the ones with fruit.  :-)

I'm not a big sweet salad fan, but I do love dressing! So for those dressing lovers out there...

Lettuce (I use Iceburg)
Green Onions
Tomatoes
Peppers (all colours)
Red Onion

And the dressing is:

1 Serving of Low Calorie (about 30 cals) ranch Dressing per person
and then POUR on Salsa.
Mix and serve.

MMMmmmm....  Soggy-spicy-goodness...

my favorite salad is romaine and spinach with cucumber, zucchini, red onions, mushrooms, clover sproats, mixed bell peppers, garbanzo beans, kidney beans and roasted red pepper with parmasian vinaigrette (35 cals/ 2 tbs). 

 sooo yummy!!!! 

 

Rena