A Week of Salads

Even if I ate a different kind of salad every day for a week I'd get so sick of it. I need warm food on a daily basis, not cold.

And now that I've posted that, it seems very unhelpful. So here is a recipe!

Apple Pecan Quinoa Salad

Box of quinoa cooked using low sodium chicken broth instead of water
1 cup chopped pecans or almonds
2 granny smith apples, chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries or a fresh berry of your choosing or leave it out
1/4 - 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
3 tbsp olive oil
1.5 tbsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Salt and pepper to taste (if you want)

After making the quinoa, whisk the oil and dijon together and mix it into the quinoa. Then add the other ingredients, stir, and put the lid back on the quinoa pot until the apples soften and cheese melts.

It can be served hot or cold!

I used a bulgur/quinoa blend when I made this and only 1/4 cup of cheese. I wouldn't have missed the cranberries - there were so few once it was all mixed together.

Personally, I love a nice cranberry and almond (or walnut) salad made with carrots and spring mix lettuce drizzled with Balsamic Vinaigrette.

I go in spurts with salad meals. I've done taco salads with taco seasoned ground turkey, avocado, lettuce or spinach, salsa and Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, and recently spinach with edamame, peppers, tomatoes and seitan or chicken with a sesame ginger dressing. Kind of a take on this. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1385111-edamame-steak-salad

I tried that once. No luck. Apparently potato salad doesn't count.

i love this one:

seafood salad : egg kani and mayo with onion

I eat a huge salad everyday for lunch. These are the basics:
ALWAYS:
- Spinach, kale, and/or spring mix
- Grape tomatoes
- Red onion
- Cucumbers
- Some kind of in-season fruit (strawberries, mango, peaches, pomegranate)
- Feta (because this gives me the most "bang" for the least calories & the saltiness contrasts w/ the sweetness of the fruit) but sometimes blue cheese
- 1/2 fresh lemon, squeezed over
- 4 oz. chicken, steak or other protein
- My homemade vinaigrette (olive oil, water, fresh citrus juice, vinegar, fresh garlic, salt & pepper)

SOMETIMES:
If I've lifted that day & need a more substantial meal, I'll add some pine nuts, avocado, walnuts, quinoa or sweet potato. I use a homemade vinaigrette & dig in!

We have eaten salads everyday for lunch for the past 6 months! I love salads and can't get enough!!!

Leafy greens, usually spinach & kale, sometimes chard & bok choy
protein--chicken, salmon, pork, tuna
dressing--olive oil & spices, sometimes a mustard dressing
add in as you need--hard boiled egg, nuts, seeds

I love salads and there are many more options that I have listed. There are tons of recipes for dressings which helps me to keep it different. I need a dressing, my fiancée doesn't. I've also put some what some call weird stuff in salads before, like rice. That freaked out all the people I worked with at that time. Just do what you like!!

Whatever salad you make, make sure you have protein in there. The fiber you will get from veggies is great but you need that protein.
Caesar salad with chicken
fruit salad maybe for mornings
house salad with ham and roast beef
some kind of mexican salad that has beans in it, with corn
egg salad
you really can make anything into a salad - be creative! Just don't add too much mayo or butter in because it is high calorie and fatty.