When you hear the word Salad, what comes to mind?
Do you dread it? Does it feel like yet another life sucking, taste lacking bowl of ew? Or is it a crunchy, crispy, splash of colorful and vibrant yumminess? Is it just water - like plain iceberg lettuce that lost its texture and crispness? Is it boring? Or is it Where's the Bacon and fried bread, ahem I mean croutons?
I'm going to share some of my best kept secrets with you - that I only share with my clients to help you get the MOST out of your salads and to not completely void out the good intentions you had at the outset.
1) Go Commando or Dress Your Salad with the right kind of dressing- Skip reduced calorie and reduced fat dressings - Why? Because they are usually full of added sugars or salts. Opt for a full fat version salad dressing, if you really want to step your game up, a homemade salad dressing is ideal. You know what's in the homemade dressing, and it doesn't contain stuff you don't want like Canola Oil for example. A simple homemade dressing consists of your oil base - extra virgin olive oil is good, vinegar, herbs, and seasoning (salt & pepper) - it's super simple to make and only takes a few minutes and tastes way better than it's store bought counterparts.
Do you dread it? Does it feel like yet another life sucking, taste lacking bowl of ew? Or is it a crunchy, crispy, splash of colorful and vibrant yumminess? Is it just water - like plain iceberg lettuce that lost its texture and crispness? Is it boring? Or is it Where's the Bacon and fried bread, ahem I mean croutons?
I'm going to share some of my best kept secrets with you - that I only share with my clients to help you get the MOST out of your salads and to not completely void out the good intentions you had at the outset.
1) Go Commando or Dress Your Salad with the right kind of dressing- Skip reduced calorie and reduced fat dressings - Why? Because they are usually full of added sugars or salts. Opt for a full fat version salad dressing, if you really want to step your game up, a homemade salad dressing is ideal. You know what's in the homemade dressing, and it doesn't contain stuff you don't want like Canola Oil for example. A simple homemade dressing consists of your oil base - extra virgin olive oil is good, vinegar, herbs, and seasoning (salt & pepper) - it's super simple to make and only takes a few minutes and tastes way better than it's store bought counterparts.
2) Breaded and Fried Meat - Have you ever been at McDonald's or any other place to eat and you've hear someone order everything fried and then a order Diet Coke to wash it all down with? Sounds insane right? They justify it by saying they don't want to cause their blood sugars to shoot up, while this is a nice notion- the bleached refined bread, fried potatoes and sauce laden food they are consuming is quickly converted to simple carbs which is then what? SUGAR. Fried meat on your salad is just as contradictory, opt for the broiled or grilled variety, even better is if you cook it yourself and add to your salad. During your meal planning for the week, cook several chicken breasts to be used throughout the week for meal time. Add the basics to them like salt, pepper, garlic etc so that it's versatile enough to fit in with any other dish you decide to use the remainder of the cooked chicken for, without having to cook more chicken for that dish. It's call the "Cook Once, Eat Twice Method", I share this with my clients who are simply too busy to cook and want extra options instead of eating out all the time. Bonus, you'll save $$$$. Who doesn't like to save money? If you'd like some additional crunch, add almonds, pepitas, or some other type of nut and or seed to your salad - nuts actually boost the nutritional absorbency of the salad, blocks some of the fat, and you get the texture crunch that you're craving - without the guilt.
3) Drowning in Dressing - I get it, salad can be boring IF you don't kick the flavor up a notch. Less is certainly more here, this is not the time to be modest and completely cover up in dressing, especially if you don't want to have to cover up that Bod this summer - yasssss I did just say that. This is a two way street - you want to be able to finish the salad and not leave a pool of soggy leaves/veggies at the bottom of your bowl, & you should actually taste and enjoy the vegetables. The dressing is just that, a little something extra to go with the vegetables which is your point of focus. Here's how you avoid this mistake, instead of pouring your dressing directly onto the salad, especially for the heavier more dense/creamy version, try placing your dressing into a cup and dipping your salad into the dressing as you go. You're winning because if you decide you're full, you can save the rest for later and secondly the salad is still just as crisp as when you started, and you're not wasting uneaten salad/veggies. Also, use heavier leafy greens besides iceberg lettuce, opt for spinach, romaine, kale (massage it a bit), mixed baby field greens, and if you can purchase your salad greens organic - it's better for you.
What are some ways you make your Salad absolutely stand out? Don't be shy, share your sexy salad secrets in the comments section below!
If you'd like to learn more about how to get the most out of your meals, and what your body requires nutritionally, feel free to schedule a free consultation with me by clicking the link.
xoXo Loves,
Davon
What are some ways you make your Salad absolutely stand out? Don't be shy, share your sexy salad secrets in the comments section below!
If you'd like to learn more about how to get the most out of your meals, and what your body requires nutritionally, feel free to schedule a free consultation with me by clicking the link.
xoXo Loves,
Davon
RSS Feed
