Calling all Salad fans!!

Addy0315
Addy0315 Posts: 48
edited September 29 in Food and Nutrition
Okay so I am a salad lover and well my favorite all time dressing is .... RANCH... Not the best dressing though since trying to lose weight. I make my own ranch so last time I did make it with Skim milk at least... What is your favorite kind of salad dressing?? Is it good for you? Also salad ideas how do you change yours up?? I am in need of ideas! =)

Replies

  • Nikki_is_Knotty
    Nikki_is_Knotty Posts: 248 Member
    I switch between FF ranch, FF western, and a mix between FF ranch and Taco sauce!! I know the FF dressing should be avoided but I look on the bright said, that im eating salads :)
  • jlewis2896
    jlewis2896 Posts: 763 Member
    I hear you. My favorite dressing is blue cheese, and it's loaded with fat...

    I have switched to a light raspberry vinaigrette and I eat it with grilled chicken/steak, romaine lettuce, blue cheese crumbles and fresh strawberries. It's delicious....

    I also just found a recipe for a dressing made from tea. Haven't tried it, but it sounds great:

    3 Lemon Zinger tea bags (steeped for 10 minutes in 1/2 cup of white vinegar, then squeeze out tea bags into the vinegar to get all the flavor)
    1 cup of olive oil
    1/2 tsp of dill weed
  • jlewis2896
    jlewis2896 Posts: 763 Member
    Oh, and mashed avocado on a taco salad (no shell!) with some salsa is great, too!
  • Amy_B
    Amy_B Posts: 2,317 Member
    This is my favorite salad. You can tweak it to your liking as well.

    spinach
    grilled chicken (if you have it)
    any dried fruit you like
    any nuts you like
    croutons if you want
    shredded cheddar cheese (adds fat and cals though and not necessary)
    berries, apples, mandarin oranges (to your liking)
    sesame ginger dressing or Asian dressing or raspberry viniagrette...my fave is Newman's Own Light Sesame Ginger


    You can use what you like and what you have the calorie allowance for. :smile:
  • CassieLEO
    CassieLEO Posts: 757 Member
    Buy the packets of Hidden Valley ranch seasoning and make a vinegarette with it! Its delicious!
  • Addy0315
    Addy0315 Posts: 48
    These are all awesome ideas!! Theres an asian chicken salad at Panera Bread that I love I found the dressing recipe but it did not come out the same. Its missing something but I've heard they carry the dressing at target.
  • Addy0315
    Addy0315 Posts: 48
    How do you make ur ranch packet vingerette Cassie??
  • TinaS88
    TinaS88 Posts: 817 Member
    My favorite has always been Ranch but I have been avoiding it at all costs. I now use a fat free Caesar that's only 20 calories :P
  • shesblossoming
    shesblossoming Posts: 426
    I LOVE pesto ranch. However... it has ranch dressing. And it's very fattening. But oh, so delicious. I have been using balsamic vinaigrette lately. I love the acidity. However, since I love pesto ranch so much, I tend to eat that with a salad on a cheat day.
  • DebbieHarryxxx
    DebbieHarryxxx Posts: 11
    Try mixing wholegrain mustard with a bit of light mayo - about 20 calories :) and try with a spicy chicken salad :) yum!
  • indigoangel86
    indigoangel86 Posts: 51
    I love salads! I make one everyday. I use Kraft Ranchers Choice, I figure since veggies have no fat in them than I can afford some in my dressing! My fave salad concoction is romaine lettuce and green grapes, you have to try it to know how good it is. Lol. Oh, and sometimes I add a hard boiled egg, or cauliflower or carrots.
  • bella8282
    bella8282 Posts: 188 Member
    I lernt to love salads with no dressings. try and enjoy the natural taste by adding different flavoured and textured foods.

    chargrill some asparagas
    bake some pumpkin
    steam some beetroot
    grate some carrot
    use different kinds of lettuce greens or cabbages
    top with some sprouted grains
    add some seeds - flax,sunflower,pumpkin,poppy,seasame
    add a tbls spoon of unsweetened sundried fruits i.e cranberries,currents,raisns,blueberries
    add a tin of tuna with a squeeze of lemmon and mustard seeds
    put fresh fruits, like apple,pear,grapes,figs ... grate,chop,slice
    add cheese if you like dairy... cottage,ricotta,feta or some hard cheeses.
    add fresh herbs, corriander,mint,dill etc

    I am Vegitarian/vegan ... and follow mostly a raw food diet.... but my husband likes the following ...

    add cheese if you like dairy... cottage,ricotta,feta or some hard cheeses.

    my husbands fav salad i make him is rocket,fennel,blue cheese and grapes... he does add a tiny drizzle of balsamic sometimes too this.

    make some fresh homus or tatziki ad add a small dolop with some poached chicken....


    add a tin of tuna with a squeeze of lemmon and mustard seeds

    If you want to make something other than a green salad you could make

    basmati rice salad ( basmati is low GI)

    Cous cous salad

    Quinoa salad

    buckweat salad

    barley salad

    chickpea salad

    lenitl salad

    I have recipe's for all of the above if you would like some. just let me know :)
    hope this is helped!!!
  • Alidecker
    Alidecker Posts: 1,262 Member
    I love a good vinegar and oil based dressing which I now measure and make at home. I usually mix vinegar, oil and then add different herbs like basil, oregano. To mix it up, I sometimes add mustard to the dressind or I make it with different types of vinegar,,red wine, apple cider, white, etc. Lately I have made a sundried tomato version, but that is because I had some sundried tomatos that came in olive oil for a recipe and I just use that oil. I just don't use much dressing though and it seems like you don't need as much with vinegar and oil as you do with a mayo based dressing.
  • marlabelle
    marlabelle Posts: 55 Member
    I love salad too!! I make my own salad dressings. I developed 3 recipes that are low fat, low calorie & low sodium but high in flavor. They are basically a vinaigrette thickened with caramelized onion & sugar free jam which adds body & sweetness with out adding sugar & fat. The flavors are Apricot Poppyseed, Raspberry Balsamic & Ginger Miso.

    I eat two salads a day. They have the same base but the toppings are different to satisfy flavor and texture combos. The quick run down is...
    Lunch: 3.5 cups romaine, .5 tomato, .5 cup peeled & diced cucumber, .5 avocado, .5 oz unsalted dry roasted almonds, a serving of croutons & 1 tbl. of dressing.
    Dinner: 3.5 cups romaine, 10 grape tomatoes, .5 cup diced english cucumber, 2 tbl. crasins, 2 tbl. unsalted dry roasted almonds, 1 oz fat free feta, small pinch of tamari pumpkin seeds, serving of crouton & 1 tbl. dressing.

    I will add or subtract almonds to account for calorie overages or shortcomings and I rotate the dressings so I don't get burned out. I also toss my salads to distribute the dressing evenly which is how I can get away with so much lettuce & a tiny bit of dressing.

    I hope I was somewhat helpful! :)
  • giammarcor
    giammarcor Posts: 217 Member
    I've been putting strawberries in my salads lately and they really add some great flavor.
  • sarabeth9114
    sarabeth9114 Posts: 9
    i just made this salad tonight and it was awesome!

    Mixed lettuce
    Mandrin oranges (drain juice)
    apple
    blue cheese (to your liking)
    light raspberry vinaigrette
    strawberry granola ( it said pecans but i switched it up)

    depending on the amount of cheese and dressing i calculate 140 cals for a dinner size portion !

    i also only use to eat ranch, i found that slowly switching to different dressings helped. i now like olive oil and vinger with a little salt and some pepper!
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
    Marie's Yogurt dressing, all kinds. Organic red pepper is really good too. They are all lower in sodium.
  • Amy_B
    Amy_B Posts: 2,317 Member
    The other day I was out of ranch dressing to give the kiddos for carrot dip, but I did have a ranch dressing dry packet and some nonfat plain Greek yogurt. They LOVED it! You might make it more of a salad dressing by adding a bit of skim milk??
  • milaxx
    milaxx Posts: 1,122 Member
    On the advice of a food blog I read I splurged and bought a bottle of fig vinegar. expensive but worth it. 1 tbsp is 30 cal but oh so good. I had it on a salad of mixed greens, dried cranberries, walnuts and black olives.

    If you are a ranch fan I would experiment with greek yogurt and my favorite spices. I haven;t bought a bottled dressing in months.
  • Lholford
    Lholford Posts: 34 Member
    2 cups fresh spinach, 1/4 cup chopped cucumber, 1/2 cup mandarin oranges, 3 pecan halves, 2 tablespoon fat free balsamic vinaigrette ....., yumyumyum
  • _Aimée_
    _Aimée_ Posts: 190
    My fav dressing is honey and mustard over chicken and crisps lettuce and tomato, love pesto too. A really nice side salad is grated carrot tossed with a little white balsamic vinegar.
  • skinnyhopes
    skinnyhopes Posts: 402 Member
    HiddenValley FF ranch is really good. Only 35 cals for 2 tbsps :)
  • bizco
    bizco Posts: 1,949 Member
    I've learned to love Light Italian dressing. In a 2 Tbsp serving it has only 35 calories, 2.5g of good fat (mono & poly) and only 2g of sugar. The sodim isn't the best at 340mg but I still manage to stay under my sodium goal. It took me a little while to develop a taste for it but after looking at the nutrition panels of other bottled dressings it didn't take me long to learn to love it. Lots of flavor! I prefer the Wishbone brand.
  • maemiller
    maemiller Posts: 439 Member
    red wine vinegar and some olive oil. Better yet olive oil and a fresh squeezed lemon!

    I try to stay away from processed foods..too many hidden factors, like sodium
  • kitinboots
    kitinboots Posts: 589 Member
    Raspberry vinaigrette or balsamic.
    Sometimes I chop up a tomato really fine with sone herbs/spices and use that instead of a dressing.
  • bkelley32148
    bkelley32148 Posts: 279 Member
    bump
  • leslie2333
    leslie2333 Posts: 2
    I like creamy Italian...not very good for dieting...so i buy the yogurt ranch dressing (in the produce side typically next to the tofu section) and mix it with fat free Italian or fat free balsamic vinaigrette....its delicious and half the calories if not more then using creamy Italian.
  • leslie2333
    leslie2333 Posts: 2
    I love salads......i love creamy italian but obviously its full of carbs...i typically mix balsamic vinegar with light ranch. I eat salads alot and was getting tired of eating the same type of salad...so when ever i go to resturants and i order a salad i try to make it at home with a twist as to how i like it. here are my top three salads:

    summer time salad-romaine lettuce, cucumbers, rainbow slaw, mandarin oranges, pineapple, dried cranberries, starberries, blueberrys, sprinkle some walnuts and sunflower seed, with a raspberry vinegarette (sometimes i will add grilled chicken)

    south west salad-romaine lettuce, shredded 2% cheese, jalepenos, onions, peppers, grilled chicken, tortilla strips (just a few), and for the dressing i mix 2 table spoons of hot salsa and 2 table spoons of light sour cream (60 calories for 4 tablespoons). super YUMMY!!! sometimes i will add turkey chilli instead of chicken....

    tuna salad- romaine lettuce, onions, peppers, cucumbers, diced pickles, 1/2 can of drained tuna, chick peas, hard boiled egg, tomatoes and light robusto italian


    These are my top three favorite salads....i have all kinds of dressing in my fridge and various salad toppers (tortilla strips, egg noodles, potato sticks, almonds, sunflower seeds, wonton strips, cranberries, etc...i like to have the crunch in my salads to i sprinkle a little of these depending on what type of salad im making). They definetly spice up a boring salad.

    hopefully this helps you entertain your taste buds!
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