Salad
Creamy Honey Dijon Dressing (fat-free)
I’m really not a mustard person – I won’t touch the plain stuff, but a little honey dijon, put in the right places and dilluted properly, can really do wonders.
Like this salad dressing for example. I cannot sing its praises enough. Sweet and tangy, but no fat to worry about. Jay said it had a bit too much kick for him, but I think that may have more to do with the brand of honey dijon that I was using (French’s, the store was out of the Jack Daniel’s that I usually get) than with the dressing itself.
Works great for traditional salads, sweeter salads, or as a broccoli slaw dressing.
Creamy Honey Dijon Dressing (fat-free)
adapted from AllRecipes.com
- 1 (6 oz) container of plain yogurt (fat-free, or normal if you don’t care about that kind of thing)
- 1 Tbs honey dijon mustard
- 1/4 c honey
- 1/4 tsp. celery seed
Blend all ingredients together with wisk or spoon. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving.
Happy Cooking!
Cilantro Ranch Salad
Fab new salad coming at ya:
Boom Baby! You can make this as lean or as fatty as you want (I went lean – imagine that?!), but either way it is a taste KNOCK OUT. The first time around we went fancy with the lime chicken, but for the week after I made quick salads with lettuce, beans and corn which were also amazing.
Thanks to The Double Dipped Life who gave me the idea for this (thought I did make the occasional tweak here and there).
Cilantro Ranch Salad
Dressing
- 1 packet of Buttermilk Ranch Dressing mix
- 1 c. mayo (I used fat free)
- 1/2 c. buttermilk (to make this fat free, simply take one Tbs of lemon juice, then add enough skim milk to it to make one cup)
- juice of one lime (about 2 Tbs, add zest for extra kick if desired)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/2 c. rough chopped cilantro
- 1/4 c. green salsa
Toss everything in a blender and blend it until everything is pureed. Store in the fridge until ready to use. (For best results make the dressing early in the day so that it is chilled for serving.)
Kim’s note: This dressing is THICK and this recipe makes TONS! Adjust accordingly for texture and amount preferences (I might try adding a bit extra milk the next time I make it).
Lime Chicken (Salad topping or for any Mexican food filling)
- Juice of one lime
- 1 Tbs sugar
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/4-1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tsp fresh chopped cilantro
- 3-4 chicken breasts cut to bite sized pieces
- 1 small onion, sliced
Combine all marinade ingredients and chicken in an air-tight container, let chill for at least 30 minutes (mine was in the fridge all afternoon). Dump out chicken and sauce in a frying pan and cook with sliced onion until done. Serve warm.
Serve the salad as you wish with fresh lettuce, tomatoes, beans, corn, cheese, chips, quesadilla wedges, whatever you like.
Cranberry Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
THIS salad was by far the best thing that I “cooked” all through the holidays. It beat the ham, it beat the spuds, it rocked.
Oh – and that’s some non-fat dressing you’re looking at to boot!
I’m putting up the dressing recipe, but the salad recipe itself can be whatever you like – suggestions follow…
Cranberry Vinaigrette
- 8 oz whole berry cranberry sauce (about half a normal can, or one small can if you can find it)
- 1/3 c. apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/8 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 1 Tbs. honey dijon mustard
- 3 Tbs. water
Add all ingredients to your blender and liquify. Store in an air tight contain in the fridge until ready to serve. Can store for several days.
The pictured salad is made of:
- Sweet baby lettuces
- Spinach
- red onion
- cheese
- cucumber
- candied almonds*
- tomatoes
Next time I’m absolutely adding fresh berries and dried cranberries too.
*Rather than buying tons of candied almonds which I knew I’d eat by the truck load, I bought natural almonds, chopped them, and then sauteed them with only a little cooking spray, sugar and cinnamon. Wonderful taste, wonderful crunch, no butter and no commitment to eat a million candied nuts.
Broccoli Slaw Salad
Years ago, Jay, my oldest brother and I crashed a wedding. It’s not that we wanted to be rude, it’s just that my other brother was going to be in the same state as us for this wedding with his girlfriend (who is now my sister in law), and we desperately wanted to see him. When that family heard that we were on our way, they cleared out some extra table room at the reception and even let us stay with them over night. The next day before leaving town the mom of the family offered me some of this Broccoli Slaw salad and I instantly fell in love. It was so sublime, I thought for sure that she must have spent ages working on it, but when I asked for the recipe she laughed and told me it was just 4 ready-to-use ingredients from the store.
Since then I’ve healthified it a touch and made it for lots of potlucks and parties, always with great reviews.
Broccoli Slaw Salad
- 1 bag broccoli slaw (can be found in your grocer’s produce section near the bagged salad mixes)
- dried cranberries
- sliced almonds
- 1/2 c. poppy seed dressing
- 1/2 c. fat free cottage cheese
The amounts of the ingredients really depends on your tastes. I usually use about a 1/4 c. almonds and 1/3 c. cranberries (well broken apart since they tend to stick together), but as with all salads you can use as much or as little as you like. Combine the dressing and cottage cheese in a small bowl until evenly mixed, then pour over salad ingredients until coated. Refrigerate until time to serve, but use promptly.
*Kim’s note: I’m not one to usually get wrapped up in brands, but the very best poppy seed dressing I have found is Briannas. It is however very, very fattening which is why I dilute it with the cottage cheese. The flavor is strong enough to carry through, but the fat and calories are greatly reduced.
Bringing Healthy Back: Navajo Taco
Mmm, navajo tacos are so good. Warm, buttery fry bread, covered in slimey chili and salad. When they made these for lunch at my old job I got giddy, I frolicked, I didn’t think about how bad they are.
But, I’ve been thinking about that lately, and have come up with a solution.
Start with a low-cal healthy pita bread such as:
The best part about them:
This isn’t a fancy health-food store item, I got it as Super Wal Mart right next to the unhealthy pitas, and the even more unhealthy tortillas.
Warm the pita bread in your microwave for 30 seconds, it becomes warm, soft, and pliable. Top the pita with vegetarian chili, and every other awesome taco salad food that you like. Sticking with the healthy theme of the evening, I left the cheese off and used only fat-free sour cream.
Healthier Navajo Taco
5 pita breads
2 c. vegetarian chili (I used a red bean and lentil that they’re selling in bulk packages at Costco now – Amazing!)
lettuce (I also mixed some fresh cilantro into my lettuce)
black beans, drained rinsed
corn, drained
tomato
cucumber
guacamole
fat free sour cream
a few tortilla chips for crunch, if desired.
*Leave off the sour cream for the lactose-free version.
Happy Cooking!
Fiesta Salad
The only reason I can think to call this Fiesta Salad is because it’s a party in your mouth. : ) The flavor is tangy, but not overpowering when used sparingly, and is a healthy, oil free, blend of awesome veggies and flavors.
Lime-Honey Dressing:
- ¼ c. lime juice
- ¼ c. applesauce
- ¼ c. apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tbs honey
- 2 Tbs cilantro
- 2 garlic cloves, minced very fine
Meat Mixture:
- 3 small chicken breasts, trimmed of fat and cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 small onion, cut into thin rings
- ½ red pepper, chopped to small pieces
- 1 Tbs fresh chopped cilantro
Salad:
- Romaine lettuce
- black beans, drained, rinsed
- corn, drained
- cucumbers
- cilantro
- avocado chunks
- tortilla chip crumbles
- cheese, if desired
Mix together all dressing ingredients until well blended making about 1 cup of dressing (I didn’t use nearly that much, so this can be halved if you aren’t feeding a big crowd). Refrigerate until needed.
Sauté chicken, onion, and pepper chunks in about ¼ c. dressing mixture. Add fresh cilantro.
When the meat is ready build your salad master piece!
Eating Out at Home: The Earl Cobb Wrap
Have you ever had the Earl of Sandwich’s Earl Cobb wrap? They claim it to be on their Lighter Side menu, but to see the huge chunks of cheese they use made me question just how low cal it could be.
And yet, I adore it. Here I’ve done my best to recreate its glory at my house, but cut some calorie corners. In doing so I’ve discovered the perfect meal for both men and women. Just look at what happened at our house (somewhat romanticized, but not too far from true):
Jay comes home from work to find the whole house smelling like fresh cooked bacon.
Jay: Mmm, bacon. Whatcha cookin’ good-lookin’?
Me: Bacon, chicken, buttermilk ranch sauce, you know, nothing special.
Jay: Wow, sounds great.
Me: Hmm, this bacon is so crumbly and this sauce is so slimy, we should keep it together with these vegetables and low-cal wraps.
Jay: Sounds good, let’s eat.
And we did and we were both thrilled. I didn’t even tell Jay that it was turkey bacon until the meal was over. He only shrugged and said, Huh?
Here’s the game plan to make this scene a reality at your house:
Earl’s Cobb Wrap
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked, roughly cut
- 4 slices turkey bacon, cooked till crispy, crumbled
- 2 heads of Romaine lettuce, chopped
- 1 cucumber, peeled and sliced in half moons
- chopped tomato
- dried cranberries
- cubed cheddar cheese
- non-fat buttermilk Ranch dressing*
- low-cal wraps (I used Flat-Out light wraps, they’re only 90 calories, but still really big and soft)
Combine ingredients in the quantities that you like, wrap up and enjoy!
Kim’s notes:
I first cooked the bacon, then cooked the chicken in the same pan with the drippings, but any cooked chicken will do. I combined them both in one bowl, stirred and then refrigerated them until needed.
*To make the fat-free Ranch sauce, I used a packet of Buttermilk Ranch dressing powder, stirred it into a container of fat free sour cream, and then mixed about half of the ranch-sour cream with skim milk until I had the consistency I wanted. This made for a great and normal Ranch flavor, instead of a diet flavor.
Nod to Cesar, That’s a Wrap!
Doing salad bars for dinner is fun and it pleases everyone since they get to pick what they like. Tonight we went for Chicken Cesar wraps, with homemade dressing. This is lactose-free, fat free, and has a lot of tang, but I was pleasantly surprised to see both of my boys gobble it up.
Homemade Cesar Dressing
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp mustard (I used a honey dijon)
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 c. natural apple sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
3 Tbs lemon juice (I think I might reduce this the next time to 2 and taste it)
1/4 c. fat-free mayo
Combine all ingredients and mix well until there is an even, creamy consistency.
Helpful hint: Make the dressing in the morning allowing it to sit and chill in fridge for most of the day for the flavors to really blend.
Use dressing sparingly since it has plenty of kick. For our wraps we used black beans, carrots, Romaine lettuce, green onions, tomato, shredded chicken, parmesan cheese, and croutons, but you can use whatever would be most enjoyable for your family.
White & Wild Rice Chicken Lettuce Wraps
This recipe got both Jay and I really excited – it’s fresh, flavorful, totally good for you, and way more filling than we expected! With a couple of tweaks to the original recipe I cut the oil and freshened it up. Jay and I ate this as lettuce wraps, it it would also be awesome on a bed of lettuce, in a wrap, or a pita.
White & Wild Rice Chicken Lettuce Wraps
1 box (6 oz) white-and-wild rice mix
3 Tbs rice vinegar
1 Tbs honey-dijon mustard
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 c. natural apple sauce
1 lb cooked, shredded chicken
1 gala apple, cored and chopped
1 green onion, sliced
2 large celery ribs, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/2 c. almond slices
1/2 c. dried cranberries
large full lettuce leaves for wraps
Prepare rice mix according to box directions, omitting oil if called for. Meanwhile, combine vinegar, mustard, pepper, and apple sauce in a small bowl. In a larger serving dish combine chicken, apple, onion, celery, carrot, almonds, and cranberries. Mix until evenly blended. Once rice cooks, add to serving dish and mix in. By tablespoon scoops add the “dressing” mixture to the rice salad, stirring between each addition. Use as much dressing as needed to coat all of the ingredients (I didn’t use all that I made, but close). Scoop salad mixture into lettuce leaves and enjoy!
*Kim’s Note: to cook the chicken, I boiled it on a med-high heat, and then shredded it by hand. This kept the moisture in, and saved the healthy element of this recipe by not frying.
