I love salads. Sounds crazy to my beer guzzling, pizza eating friends, but it is totally true. I love a good salad. Salads are super nutritious when you pack them with a variety of colorful organic vegetables, some lean protein, and a great dressing. If you want to get fancy, throw in some fruit, nuts and cheese. Your vitamins, minerals, fiber, proteins and healthy fats all coexist in one happy little bowl.
Salads make a wonderful quick meal on day when you just do not feel like cooking. They are a fresh way to transform leftovers, fit great into your clean eating lifestyle, and can really satisfy your hunger.
Totally fabulous right?
Perhaps it is my deep love for salad that fuels the angst and aggression I experience each time I walk down the supermarket salad dressing aisle.
It’s criminal. Very well intentioned people are tricked into smothering their beautiful salads with what I can only describe as “horror in a bottle.”
Nearly every dressing is loaded with artificial, chemical and GMO-laden ingredients. The most common one, soybean oil, which I feel is one of the worst things you can consume.
Cheap, genetically modified oils like soybean oil contain primarily Omega-6 fatty acids, which cause chronic inflammation, which is the precursor to most disease. I’m talking obesity, diabetes, hormonal imbalances, infertility, sexual dysfunction, joint pain, thyroid disorder, arthritis, acne…the list goes on and on. Nobody wants that on top of a salad.
To be fair, I did find a couple that did have good quality ingredients such as olive oil, and other non-gmo ingredients. But those were few and far between, and they cost a pretty penny.
So, why not make your own healthy, nutritious dressings instead. In seconds, for just pennies, andwith just a few ingredients you likely already have in the kitchen, you can whip up your own simple, delicious, and healthy dressing. A perfect pairing for your salad.
Grab a set of mason jars and some good olive oil and get ready to start creating some awesome salads. (Note: I have a sensitivity to olives, so I substitute the olive oil with avocado oil)
Lemon Pepper Vinaigrette Dressing
Juice from one lemon
1 cup olive oil
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. sea salt
Directions: Squeeze the juice out of the lemon into the mason jar and being care not to get any seeds in it. Add the olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper and put the lid on and shake like crazy. Refrigerate or serve immediately.
Honey Lime Vinaigrette
1/3 cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons of honey
Juice from one lime
2 Tablespoons of white vinegar
1 Tablespoon of cumin
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
Directions: Whisk together all ingredients in a bowl, then add to mason jar and serve immediately or refrigerate. You could also just throw everything in the mason jar and shake it like you have never shook anything before
Cherry Vinaigrette Dressing
1 cup olive oil
1/4 cup dried cherries
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 T sherry vinegar
1 tsp. organic Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
Directions: Place cherries in mason jar and cover with balsamic vinegar and sherry vinegar. Let sit for 15 minutes. Add remaining ingredients into the mason jar, shake, and serve immediately or refrigerate.
Apple Cider Vinaigrette Dressing
1 cup of olive oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. onion powder
2 T mustard powder
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 tsp. minced thyme
1/2 tsp. minced basil
1 tsp. sea salt
Directions: Place all ingredients into the mason jar, shake it, swirl it, turn it upside down, then do it again. Serve immediately or refrigerate.
