Fitness Blender / Salads: A Great Addition To Any Meal

Fitness Blender

Salad: A Bowl of Health and Happiness

Salads today are full of flavor, not a bowl of wilted lettuce, over ripe tomatoes and little else. Salads today are full color, appetizing, full of fresh fruits and vegetables. They are appropriate for all occasions. You can create a salad for a family dinner, a light lunch or a dinner party. Salad can actually be your main course. The creation of salads is limitless. If you can dream it, you can create it.

Salads today can be prepared any time of year. They can be as simple or as complex as you like. Salads can be the main course by adding meat, seafood or poultry along with your greens, vegetables, nuts, fruit and cheese. Salads will fit very easily into you meal plans. As you get into the habit of adding Salads to your menu planning you will discover you are searching for the ingredients to the next type of salad you desire to place on your table.

In this day and age we are being encouraged to eat more fruits and vegetables to our diets. There isn't a better way to add these into your diet than a fresh salad at meal time.

Salads: Keep It Fresh

Salads are only as good as the ingredients that you use. It's important when purchasing your ingredients to make sure they are fresh. Just as when serving a dish eye appeal is important so let your eyes do the shopping.

Salad Recipes:

Greek Salad (4 servings)

Ingredients:

7 ounces Greek Feta cheese

2 heads of Romaine Lettuce, shredded

4 tomatoes, cut into fourths

1 Cucumber, sliced

24 Kalamata Olives, pitted

2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (such as Greek oregano, flat-leaf parsley or basil)

Dressing:

6 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 garlic clove

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Make the dressing first and set aside.

2. Prepare all salad ingredients and divide evenly into 4 bowls.

3. Drizzle with dressing and serve. (Do not add dressing until ready to serve)

Dinner Salad (4 servings)

3 ounces cucumber, sliced or diced

8 scallions, chopped

2 tomatoes, seeded

1 yellow or red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips

2-3 radishes cut into thin rounds

3 ounces spring mix

1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped

Dressing:

1/4 cup fresh or frozen berries

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, crushed

Salt & Pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients for the dressing in a blender and puree. Set aside

2. Prepare ingredients for salad and divide evenly into four bowls.

3. Drizzle with dressing and serve. (Do not add dressing until ready to serve)

Shrimp, Salmon and Tomato Salad (4 servings)

6 ounces of grape tomatoes

12 Romaine lettuce leaves

4 ounces of smoked salmon

8 ounces peeled, cooked shrimp

Dressing:

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons sugar

1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon fresh dill, chopped

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients for dressing in a bowl, set aside.

2. Cut tomatoes in half. Take the lettuce leaves and arrange around the bowl.

3. Cut smoke salmon into strips. Add tomatoes and salmon and shrimp to bowls.

4. Drizzle with dressing and serve. (Do not add dressing until ready to serve)