I have mentioned before that we eat a big salad with both lunch and dinner. These salads vary depending on my mood. I tend to get bored easily with food combinations so I have to change the salad contents for that reason. There are always a few things I like to include in my salads for maximum nutrition, these are:
1. Dark leafy greens (I tend to favor organic baby spinach)
2. Beans, cooked without salt, for protein (whole or pureed)
3. Salsa for lycopene, flavor and to stand in for fatty dressings
4. A few raw seeds or nuts so the fat soluble vitamins can be absorbed
5. Dulse granules for iodine since we don’t use much salt and what we do use is either sea or kosher salt (doesn’t contain iodine)
I am one of those people that actually like salad. I have been known to eat them for breakfast. Strange, I know. But it does make a nutrient packed meal, even for breakfast. Here is my current favorite salad.
Salad of the Moment
Serves 1
Ingredients:
4 cups baby spinach
¼ cup cold cooked cannellini beans
¼ cup salsa
1 tablespoon raw sunflower seeds
Sprinkle of dulse granules (nutrition below assumes 1/4 teaspoon)
Directions:
Combine and enjoy.
Nutritional Information:
Amount Per Serving
Calories - 266.57
Calories From Fat (18%) - 48.34
Total Fat - 5.75g
Saturated Fat - 0.7g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 500.13mg (came mostly from the salsa)
Potassium - 1842.24mg
Total Carbohydrates - 41.07g
Fiber - 12.31g
Sugar - 2.49g
Protein - 17.67g
Comments:
Today I had this salad with a small bowl of leftover mushroom, lentil and wheat berry soup. It made a filling meal that had some cooked and some raw food which is how I prefer to eat. When the weather is cold the idea of all raw food just isn’t that appealing to me.
This salad contains approximately 11,500IU of vitamin A, 35mg of vitamin C, 260mg of calcium, 9mg of iron, 250mcg of folate, 580mcg of vitamin K, 175mg of phosphorus, and 115mg of magnesium. I love meals like this that I can toss together in a few minutes that are packed with nutrition. If you make a pound of beans on the weekend you will have plenty for salads during the week. A pound of cooked beans for salad will last Dan and me for a week, assuming we have salad with lunch and dinner.
Unrelated note:
I need to finish my projects for today so it will be a while before I am back on-line. I am making a raw asparagus salad tonight. If you haven’t tried raw asparagus you should it has a great crunch and light flavor that we both love.
Before I go here is a completely gratuitous picture of my boys (Nicco and Massimo). They are two of my three cat hair making machines. We adore them, but they are high maintenance. As their human father would say, they take after their mother (me).
On that note I have to run. I hope are all having a great day. Talk to you later.
I know how you feel about salads, I used to eat them three times a day and they do get..what is the word? Repetitive??? I am always on the lookout for delicious salads. I have such a hard time eating them in the winer months though....In the sumer it is all I want :)
ReplyDeleteI am making some stuffed shells made with tofu tonight, maybe I will throw down a salad too!!
Love the salad, but I must admit that I love the kitties more ;)
ReplyDeleteThe salad looks great. I too like to use beans on my salads. I almost always use red leaf lettuce and spinach and LOVE salsa on my salads. I've not used dulce yet.
ReplyDeleteBrandi,
ReplyDeleteI hate repeating food for dinner. But salads I can eat for a week or two before I get bored. But that is about it, after that I need a change.
Can wait to see your stuffed shells.
Sarah,
The boys are pretty aren't they? Poor things everyone always assumes they are girls.
Heather,
Dulse granules only taste salty to me. I don't get any seaweed flavor from them. I have had many friends try them and then buy them to reduce their sodium consumption.
Alicia
Aww, beautiful kitties!!! Love that natural light!
ReplyDeleteI love salsa on salad!
Yum, Yum, and Yum, that salad has my name written all over it! I have no problem eating lots of salad in winter, but I know I could not go totally raw.
ReplyDeleteYour kitties are just adorable:)
Anna,
ReplyDeleteThe "boys" said thank you for the compliment. ;)
Salsa is great on salad isn't it? I am obsessed with it right now.
Alicia
That salad looks so delicious and healthy! Love your boys. I've vowed off long-haired cats though. We have one now that wont let us near his matts.
ReplyDeleteSV,
ReplyDeleteThe salad is my current favorite. There will be a different one in a week or so. I really do get bored with food quite quickly as you probably guessed from the variety on my blog.
The boys are not terrible with getting brushed. They are single coated so they don't tend to matt easily. It probably helps that they are indoor cats. What breed is your long hair cat? Mine are Turkish Angoras.
We have a friend with a Persian that is horrible with being groomed. She has to take him to the vet for grooming because he is so bad. They give him a twilight drug to groom him. That would turn me off long hair cats too! Compared to that my felines are angels.
Alicia
I love a salad like this, and I too have been known to eat salads for breakfast! We like salsa and beans and dulse on ours, too! I often use dulse granules, but also love the dried dulse leaves. Do you ever try those? We eat them right out of the package. Even our dogs love them.
ReplyDeleteThe photo of Nicco and Massimo is beautiful! They look so regal. (And my dogs would like to challenge them to a shed-off. I say we have it at your house. LOL)
Lalo,
ReplyDeleteDried dulse leaves you say. Where do you buy that? I have never seen them, but would love to try them. Is there a brand I should be looking for?
Our cats love dulse and nori. I frequently find the dulse shaker on its side open with dulse on the counter. My felines are quiet bad, and mobile.
Never under estimate the shedding power of three long haired felines. The cats say to tell the dogs "they are on". And also to remember not to shed on those long walks or they could lose (ours don't go outside). ;) LOL
Ali
Ali ~
ReplyDeleteThe owner of my local health food store orders the Frontier brand for me (for about $30. This price on Amazon made my nose bleed!) You can also get whole dulse leaf from Maine Sea Coast Vegetables. We love it in our rice bowls as well as in our salads!
My dogs say to tell your cats - and I quote - "Oh, yeah? We can shed all the fur we want on our walks and still kick your feline fannies in a shed-off!"
(Girls, be nice! Those boys are sweet kitties, no need to talk smack! Besides, Mommy doesn't care who wins as long as we have this little contest at your Auntie Alicia's house, so don't go pissin' her off).
LOL
Lalo,
ReplyDeleteLOL, that was good. You are too funny!
Thanks for the brand on the dulse. I will definitely be on the look out for this. I use nori in our rice bowls but a change would be good.
talk to you later,
Alicia
We alternate between the dulse and the nori in our rice bowls too! (Love them both!) :-)
ReplyDeletexo
Janet,
ReplyDeleteSorry, I don't know how I missed your comment until now.
I love salad too, but 100% raw in the winter is a big no way for me too. Cold smoothies this time of me chill me to bone. Not good!
Thanks for the compliment on the boys. We love them, even though they are very bad little boys. I have to admit I am not much of an animal disciplinarian, they do run the house. But how could I not give them their way, they are so cute? ;)
Alicia