For years, salad at home had always been a boring side item ...but no more! There are a couple of restaurants that I always choose salad as a main entree and I want to make more of them at home. I think one of the secrets is being satisfied with whatever salad dressing you put on it. I've tried to cut back on the dressing but at least I don't drown the salad in it anymore. Here's my version of a new salad we had at Modern Market in Dallas recently, that I loved.
Farmer's salad:
Spring salad greens
Herb baked chicken breast
Grapes and blueberries
Toasted pecans or almonds
Charred corn
Feta cheese
So there is the link for home-made dressing, but you can probably buy some kind of champagne vinaigrette if you wish. Here's my to go-to recipe for home-made Caesar dressing when we make Grilled Chicken Caesar salads:
Healthier Caesar salad dressing:
1/4 c. plain yogurt
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 T. olive oil
1 t. lemon juice
1 t. dijon mustard
1/2 t. balsamic vinegar
1/2 t. worcestershire sauce
1/4 t. mashed garlic
dash salt and pepper
Do you have a favorite restaurant salad you've recreated at home?
3 comments:
Totally agree that without a good salad dressing, salads at home are no fun. Back in the day I used ranch, but in an effort to be healthier switched to high quality olive oils and balsamic vinegars. I keep four on hand from Teaoli (inside Inspirations Tearoom) but probably other places have these as well. For my basic green salad I use equal parts of Ultra Picual Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Traditional Balsamic Vinegar. I also like to add Superseedz gourmet pumpkin seeks (sea salt version) from Natural Grocers. A tasty way to add protein!
When I make a main dish salad and add rotisserie or grilled chicken breast and pecans, I use Blood Orange Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Pomegranate Balsamic Vinegar. I don't even mix it together, just pour on a little of each and stir up the salad. Could not be easier, and it's SO delicious! An added benefit of this type of oil and vinegar "dressing" is that it has increased my HDL (good) cholesterol!
Blood Orange EVOO sounds yummy!
It is, I love it! It's great with traditional balsamic as well, not just the pomegranate.
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