Tasty Salad

I got this guideline at Enrichment a few weeks ago (thanks Jenn!), and I LOVE this salad. The dressing is perfect! Here's all that I add (and it's approx 200 calories with the dressing): Spinach, Green Leaf Lettuce, Iceberg Lettuce, Green beans (fresh; cut unto 1in. pieces), mandarin oranges (6-8 slices; broken up), almond slivers, broccoli (fresh; broken up to be really small), sauteed mushrooms, a couple small strips of sauteed chicken (sauteed in olive oil, Italian seasoning, & a little rosemary; I break up the chicken into little pieces when I make the salad), a handful of grape tomatoes.

Doesn't this look tempting??

The Awesome Everything Salad:

This salad can be a little bit different every day, but in order to really be satisfying it needs certain core ingredients. Every salad must have a vegetable base, with a source of proteins and fats, something sweet, and something crunchy. There is overlap in these categories, but I will give you some ideas of what you can throw in below

The Green Base (choose one or more)

Mix of dark leafy greens

Baby Spinach

Thinly chopped Kale

Any favorite lettuce

Green Interest (choose one or more)

Chopped celery

Scallions/Green onions

Parsley or cilantro, chopped

Sprouts

Vegetables (choose 3-4)

(part of crunchy category)

Carrots

Tomatoes

Green Peas

Butternut Squash (microwave)

Red/Yellow Peppers (Fresh or sautéed)

Asparagus (Sautéed)

Mushrooms (Sautéed)

Protein/Fat Source (choose 1-3)

Meat Strips

Marinated Tofu (Refrigerated produce section)

Nuts (cashews, walnuts, pine nuts, pecans)

Fresh Avocado

Something Sweet

Fresh Blackberries, blueberries or strawberries

Canned mandarin oranges

Dried cranberries, blueberries or cherries

Raisins

Other Additions

Kalamatta Olives (Can buy in quantity at Costco)

Goat cheese, Feta,

Back-to-Basics Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/4 C. balsamic vinegar

3 tbsp pure maple syrup or agave nectar (we just threw in some Mrs. Butterworth's)

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp sea salt (or regular... sea salt is just healthier)

freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 small clove garlic (optional)

4 tbsp walnut oil...... (I usually use olive oil). (we go with olive oil, I'm sure it's far cheaper)

Combine all ingredients except oil and puree. Continue blending while slowly adding oil...

Lava cakes

Yes... this is COMPLETELY bad for you... but it tastes ohhh so very good. Before you check out the recipe... I feel the duty to tell you it is 621 Calories for one of these babies! (don't say I didn't warn you). This is definitely something that I will make if we have friends over for dinner. The recipe makes 6 lava cakes. I went ahead and took 3 of them upstairs to our neighbors so I wouldn't feel tempted to munch them. They said they tasted gourmet, and I agree. I don't feel it had anything to do with my abilities.. so go ahead and give it a try if you want to do something special when you have friends over (or if you have a big family). We served them still warm as the recipe suggests. I may warm the last one up in the microwave to see if leftovers work, and I'll let you know how that panned out.