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Don’t Ruin That Salad!

Summer salads!! I eat my greens everyday and switch things up by adding all kinds of toppings to my greens. Grilled veggies, eggs, goat cheese, raw nuts, raw veggies, leftover sweet potatoes, beans… The options are endless 🙂

But one thing I always do is make my own dressing.

TIP: stay away from the bottled salad dressing. In fact, don’t even visit that isle in the grocery store. Spend your time on the perimeter of the store choosing whole, fresh foods and then make your own dressing. It is very easy to ruin a perfectly great salad by glopping on a bunch of processed dressing – making your “healthy” salad now comparable to eating a cheeseburger and fries!

Bottled dressings are filled with uber-processed ingredients and fillers, many contain high fructose corn syrup (NOT GOOD!) added colors, hidden trans fats, and are extremely high in added sugar and sodium.

**SUGAR – remember 4g is equal to 1 tsp! So if your salad dressing serving is 2 tbsp and has 16g of sugar, you are getting at least 4 added tsps of sugar. Ladies, that’s almost your allowance for the entire day. And, that’s if you only use the serving size amount!**

Making your own dressings is simple, delicious and easy to create variety so you do not get bored the with same flavors day after day.

 Remember, when making your dressing:
– citrus (lemon, lime or fresh orange juice) adds a ton of flavor and little calories
– spring and summer are the seasons to grow your own herbs, which also add lots of flavor to any dish

SHARE in comments your favorite summer salad recipe and try one of these on your next creation!

Balsamic Vinaigrette
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp raw honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard
3 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Citrus Vinaigrette
3 tbsp fresh 100% orange juice
2 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp raw honey
2 tsp Dijon mustard
3 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Lemon Vinaigrette
Juice of 1 full lemon
3 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Pinch of kosher salt & pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Creamy Garlic Dressing
½ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
3 cloves crushed garlic
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
1 tsp Himalayan Salt
½ tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp raw honey (or pure maple syrup)