Salad Dressing Suggestions?

Salad dressing is a hard one because nothing, yes nothing is as jam packed full of flavor as a buttermilk ranch or 1000 island/russian dressing. However, there are some low calorie options that some people have already mentioned above.

I do use a pre-made Kraft Lite dressing, usually balsamic lite (25 cal) or raspberry vinaigrette lite (30 cal). I use one serving which is 2 tablespoons, I then add a tablespoon of Pompeian balsamic vinegar well (5 Cal). A dash of pepper and jalapenos and you have yourself a tasty salad!

I eat a salad every day that consists of: Spinach, Onion, Cucumber, Bell Pepper, Olives, Tomato, Mushrooms, and Jalapenos. It usually weighs about 400-500 grams and is a total of 200-300 calories.

I realize this might sound weird or even gross. I love salad, but have just never been a big salad dressing fan. I actually put bbq sauce on a lot of my salads. I love it!

I'm all about vinaigrettes and usually just make my own (cheaper and better ingredients than store bought). I generally stick to a 2:1 ratio of fat:acid and season w/ salt and pepper to taste. I usually use EVOO as a fat, but I like to mix it up and use avocado or grapeseed oil. For acids, different vinegars impart a different flavor. Ditto various citrus fruit juices. Sometimes I'll add an emulsifier like dijon mustard, sometimes garlic paste, and other times I keep it really simple. I tend to make them in really small batches so that I can eat a variety of different dressings during the week, which keeps my salads interesting.

ETA: If you get bored with salads, another great way to add veg to your diet is by making green smoothies. Just be careful about how much fruit you add.

I like making my own. One of my favourites is an Asian inspired dressing. Super easy to make. 1 tsp sesame oil, 1 tsp rice vinegar, 1 tsp soy sauce and then a little bit of flavoring, like powdered ginger. I use a Asian stir fry seasoning I have, it's got some sesame seeds, ginger and teriyaki flavor in it. Play around with flavours until you find something you like.

Salsa on a chicken salad!

I often just add a big blob of cottage cheese. Good protein, too.

I like Maple Grove Farms poppyseed. But whatever you pick, do measure it out to the proper serving, typically 2 tbsp. With a lighter/runnier dressing, you can get away with less.

This is actually really good. It's pretty thick, so it's perfect as a veggie dip. I just thin it with a little bit of water to use as a dressing. Can't beat 30 calories for 1/4 cup of "ranch"!

Plant Strong Vegan Ranch Dressing (or Dip)

makes about 2 1/4 cup

•1 box (12oz) Mori-nu brand lite firm silken tofu
•2 teaspoons lemon juice
•2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
•1 teaspoon salt
•1 teaspoon agave (or a drop or two of liquid stevia or just use sugar)
•1/2 cup unsweetened plain soy milk (or your favorite milk alternative)
•1 teaspoon garlic powder
•1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
•1Tablespoon dried parsley
•1 teaspoon dried dill weed

Blend everything together in a food processor (or blender) until very smooth. Store in an airtight container in your fridge for about a week - I'm being conservative here for safety's sake but I've kept it a few days past that.

Nutritional information per serving : Serving size: 1/4 cup (dressing Calculated using Mori-nu LITE Firm Silken Tofu)

30 calories, 1g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 2g carbohydrates, 0g fiber, 1g sugar, 4g protein

I have a variety of mustards and I just use those and sometimes a little olive oil. Or salsa, it makes a great salad dressing.

I have a list of easy to make salad dressings, they are much less calories than the store bought ones, and you know what is going in to it. All you need is a blender or immersion blender. Let me know if you are interested in recipes.