Anyone have a good recipe for a SALAD???

[TandT]

Can anyone give me a recipe for a REALLY good and somewhat healthy salad?

I was thinking along the lines of a lettuce salad with really good components and a great homemade dressing. I am having homemade lasagna for Christmas Dinner and would really love to have a great salad to accompany it.

THANKS!!!!

 

[LisaR]

I make my salads with the following:
Lettuce & spinach
Broccoli that has been steamed for 2 minutes
Asparagus that has been roasted unless I am feeling lazy and I steam it
Grated carrots
Diced tomatoes
Mushrooms
Roasted corn if it is in season


The dressing is to die for and I have NEVER taken my salad anywhere that I am not asked for the recipe.

It is simply some balsamic vinegar, a few big squeezes of horseradish mustard and some minced garlic. Shake it up really well and pour it over the salad right before serving.

The best way, though, is to marinate the broccoli and asparagus in the dressing instead and just pour the veggies with the marinade on top of the salad and mix well.

 

[TandT]

I make my salads with the following:
Lettuce & spinach
Broccoli that has been steamed for 2 minutes
Asparagus that has been roasted unless I am feeling lazy and I steam it
Grated carrots
Diced tomatoes
Mushrooms
Roasted corn if it is in season


The dressing is to die for and I have NEVER taken my salad anywhere that I am not asked for the recipe.

It is simply some balsamic vinegar, a few big squeezes of horseradish mustard and some minced garlic. Shake it up really well and pour it over the salad right before serving.

The best way, though, is to marinate the broccoli and asparagus in the dressing instead and just pour the veggies with the marinade on top of the salad and mix well.

That recipe sounds really good!! Thank you for posting

 

[SandrA9810]

I love the fresh spring mix lettuce and spinach as a base to my salad. And a good vinaigrette is a light way to offset the heaviness of the pasta. Wish Bone balsamic is one of my favorites.

 

[Swalphin]

The key for me to any good salad is making sure the lettuce is well dried so the dressing will adhere. I like a Boston or Bibb lettuce a simple vinaigrette with dijon mustard, red wine vinegar and a light olive or canola oil. I add the 3 into an old glass jar and shake like crazy. I try to always add an avocado sliced up, some cucumber, and whatever tomatoes seemed to "look" good. I am also making a lasagna for Christmas eve and this will be the salad we will be eating. Have a Merry Christmas

 

[mamajoan]

last year for Christmas I made the following salad... it was my favorite part of the meal. so I am gonna make it again this year.

Romaine Lettuce- chopped and very cold crispy or a big bag of Spring mix added to Romaine
red onion - thin rings
cucumbers- peeled, seeded and chopped
tomatoes - grape... but I don't eat them LOL
BACON- fried and chopped
goat cheese- crumbled
dried cranberries-a big handful
sugared/spiced pecans- a big handful


dressing of choice... I like a home made balsamic vinaigrette
family likes.... ranch ... ranch... more ranch... LOL

 

[lovesmurfs]

My favorite is Jamie's Cranberry Salad. In the summertime, I substitute fresh strawberries and toasted pecans for the cranberries and almonds. It gets rave reviews everywhere -- potlucks, church, etc.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Jamies-Cranberry-Spinach-Salad/Detail.aspx

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered
1 pound spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
1 cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons minced onion
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook and stir almonds in butter until lightly toasted. Remove from heat, and let cool.

2. In a large bowl, combine the spinach with the toasted almonds and cranberries.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, white wine vinegar, cider vinegar, and vegetable oil. Toss with spinach just before serving.

 

[maslex]

Went to my SIL's for dinner about a month ago with another couple and her friend brought the salad. I had looked at it and thought to myself....There is no way I'm going to eat that (LOL) I've always been a basic iceburg lettuce, cukes, tomatoes, onion, ranch dressing sort of salad eater. But NOW???? This is how I make my salads from now on. It was SOOOO good!!!!

Mixed lettuce
chopped apples
cucumbers
tomatoes
feta or gorgonzola cheese crumbled
glazed pecans
Ken's creamy balsamic dressing

Actually bought all the stuff yesterday while shopping and that's what I'm making for lunch today!!! I actually can't wait for lunch now. LOL So yummy!!!

 

[BCDisneyFanatic]

My go-to salad as a side dish for pasta is:

spring greens
avocado, diced
baby tomatoes, sliced in half
toasted pecans or almonds (I sprinkle them with sugar before toasting them, or buy the caramelized salad topper ones if I can find them)
dried cranberries (sometimes I use a can of mandarin oranges instead)

Dressing:

1/3 c. sugar
1/4 c. cider vinegar
1/2 c. vegetable oil (I find olive too strong-tasting in this dressing)
1 tsp. dried mustard (or dijon if you don't have dried)
1/2 tsp. salt

I always get compliments on it, and it is very easy. The avocado makes the dressing seem creamy when it's tossed, and the red cranberries and tomatoes combined with the greens make it look very festive.

 

[mtemm]

my mom loooooves this salad, especially with italian food. its a pretty big hit when she makes it. http://www.pastahouse.com/menu/special_salad.html

The Pasta House Co. Special Salad

Ingredients:

1 Head Iceberg Lettuce
1/3 Head Romaine Lettuce
1 cup Artichoke Hearts
1 cup sliced Red Onions
1 cup diced Pimentos
2/3 cup Olive Oil
1/3 cup REGINA wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2/3 cup freshly grated parmigiano cheese


Procedure:

Wash the iceberg and romaine lettuce, allowing all the water to drain completely. Place in refrigerator to chill. When lettuce is well-chilled, remove from refrigerator. Split head of iceberg lettuce in half, pulling the heart of lettuce out of both halfs and breaking into small pieces. DO NOT USE A KNIFE ON LETTUCE. Only separate the rest of the iceberg, it will break up when tossed. Tear the romaine lettuce (each leaf into 3 sections). Place both kinds of lettuce into mixing bowl.

Drain artichoke hearts well; measure and add to lettuce. DO NOT USE MARINATED ARTICHOKE HEARTS. Peel and slice red onion; drain and dice pimentos. DRAIN PIMENTOS COMPLETELY, or salad will turn red. Measure the onions and pimentos and add to lettuce.

Add Olive Oil, Vinegar, salt, pepper and toss. Then add parmigiano cheese. Toss until all is mixed completely and serve. Serves four.

Makes 1-2 Servings

 

[Christine]

I don't have a recipe but just make a basic salad.

The key to a good salad is good lettuce. I normally buy a bag of romaine hearts. I find that Costco has the nicest ones but the ones at the regular grocery stores are usually okay.

I peel off the outer leaves, cut off the stem, and then chop or tear it into bite size pieces.

After this I will usually add a handful of spring mix or, lately, I've been buying the artisan mini lettuces that give you 4 different types in plastic container. I chop/tear them up for variety and color.

For a salad that is for a special occasion and not a quick weeknight thing, I think it's important to buy regular lettuces and chop yourself, not the bagged stuff as it's not as crisp and fresh tasting.

 

[mjkacmom]

I love salad. I basically use any kind of lettuce but iceburg (mostly romaine), a fruit (apple, grapes, dried cranberry or cherries...), a cheese (romano, goat, feta, blue...), and a nut (walnuts, pecans, pine nuts...), and a red wine or balsamic dressing, or just oil and vinegar. Maybe some crutons and/or olives.

 

[bookgirl]

Okay I don't know about 'recipie' but the best salads I have ever had or served are ones that were set up as a salad bar. Lettuce either a mixture or a few different varieties, lots of bowls of additions and a selection of dressings. I've never found just 1 salad that made everyone happy but I have found out that those who love salads love the ability to customize thier own.

Oh and it's just a personal thing but I never serve "complicated" salads when I serve a heavy main dish. With a heavy lasagne I would serve a basic light salad to compliment the cheese and sauce of the dish. If I serve salads with fruits and cheeses and more "complicated" toppings I do so with fish or chicken/beef served as a grilled or basic entree.

Heavy entree and a salad with multiple flavor levels is a bit overwhelming for me. I want the salad and entree to compliment each other, not compete with my flavor profiles.

 

[missypie]

I like to add Mandarin oranges and/or dried cherries and/or dried cranberries.

Please don't add nuts unless you know that no one in the group is allergic. I have a nut allergy and am trying to eat healty foods - it's easy to pass up dessert if it's full of nuts, but it's hard to have to skip the salad. I went to a pot luck Saturday night and had to skip both beautiful salads because both we full of chopped nuts.

 

[Disney Doll]

last year for Christmas I made the following salad... it was my favorite part of the meal. so I am gonna make it again this year.

Romaine Lettuce- chopped and very cold crispy or a big bag of Spring mix added to Romaine
red onion - thin rings
cucumbers- peeled, seeded and chopped
tomatoes - grape... but I don't eat them LOL
BACON- fried and chopped
goat cheese- crumbled
dried cranberries-a big handful
sugared/spiced pecans- a big handful


dressing of choice... I like a home made balsamic vinaigrette
family likes.... ranch ... ranch... more ranch... LOL

Add some grilled chicken to it and you posted what I was going to post.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

This is pretty basic but it got rave reviews at the last party I had (where I served lasagna as well). I've been making it for the fam and even the kids like it.

spring mix
grape tomatoes
cukes
red pepper slices
feta cheese
garlic croutons
strawberry vinagrette dressing from Trader Joe's - tossed with salad just before serving

I have a friend that makes a similar salad but adds strawberries and it's really good.

 

[Cindy's Mom]

I pre-mix my salad dressing in a jar
Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar and Balsamic Vinegar
Salt, Pepper, Oregano, Basil and Savory, garlic powder, juice of a quarter lemon, Romano cheese
Shake it up, put in the freezer for an hour prior to serving, then pour on your salad, and toss is up.

 

[laurajetter]

A few years ago some of my friends got together for a potluck and one of them brought a salad I fell in love with. It's super simple so I'm not sure if it's too basic for your needs but I loved how it tasted and the presentation was very pretty and festive.

It was a big bowl full of baby spinach (at least make sure you use a dark leaf of some kind) with a mound of pomegranate piled in the center. Sprinkled around the pomegranate was feta cheese. The dressing she served with it was a cranberry vinaigrette which paired very well (you definitely should stick with something fruity; I tried a creamy dressing one time and didn't like it). She didn't have the dressing on it, we just put it on after we took a serving.

At first I wasn't sure about the pomegranate but when I tasted it everything went so well together.

In case you haven't opened a pomegranate before the best way is to fill the sink or a bowl with water, cut the pomegranate in half, submerge it in the water and as you gently break loose the seeds with your fingers they will sink to the bottom and the pithy rind will float to the top. Skim off the rind then drain the water.

Hope this helps!