My favorite lunch in the whole wide world is a salad. I eat salad pretty much every day.
I have what you could call a salad habit.
Do you know why I love salad? Let me count the ways. For starters, it's delicious. It's good for you, of course. There are no rules when it comes to salad, so you can indulge a bit of your rebellious side. (Think of that next time you eat a salad — you're rebelling!)
But the thing I love the most about salads is that they're easy. Anyone can make a salad, even people who claim to not know how to cook. Because, of course, there's no cooking involved in salad-making — it's all assembly. Just throw whatever you think is delicious in a bowl with some leaves and you're good.
My favorite salad is aurugula with caramelized walnuts, blue cheese, cranberries, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The one pictured above also has grapes left over from New Year's Eve. (Latin people are supposed to eat twelve grapes at the stroke of midnight, but I was asleep by then this year, so they went in my lunch instead.)
I used to think making a salad was a big deal. Buying all the ingredients seemed like SUCH a chore. Then I figured out that most anything can go into a salad, and that a lot of the things that are the most delicious come pre-packaged for convenience: Crumbly cheeses, dried fruit, seasoned nuts, crunchy things…the list goes on.
Another thing that has made salad making a breeze is a set of pour spout dispensers for olive oil and balsamic vinegar. No cleaning up! No searching for the huge olive oil bottle! They're a godsend for lazy people. Ahem.
What do you put on your salads? Here are some of the things I put in mine:
Eggs
Figs
Pita/tortilla chips
Rotisserie Chicken (or any meat left over from last night's dinner)
Bacon
Oranges
Cherry tomatoes
Corn
Avocado
Beans: Garbanzo, black, pinto
Grapes
Nuts, especially walnuts and almonds
Dressing: I rarely buy commercial dressings because I love olive oil and balsamic vinegar, but maybe you can convince me to try your favorite?
And always, a pinch of sea salt for crunch and flavor
My three year old loves salad for lunch. My five year old rejects them right now, but he'll come around. How could he not?
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I am the Salad Queen myself. Love, love, love a good salad (nothing with iceberg in it, however). I have a regular salad I throw together whenever the urge hits—any salad greens, though usually I have red leaf lettuce in the fridge, chopped tomato, avocado, sunflower seeds, crumbled feta cheese, a handful of corn kernels, and a few Greek olives. Tossed with homemade balsamic vinaigrette (equal parts olive oil, good quality balsamic, a big pinch of Italian seasoning, and a big pinch of sea salt). I’m salivating.
Hmmm. . I haven’t had a salad in a while—I don’t really crave them in the winter. . but you’ve gotten me interested in playing around with them. I like baby spinach in my salads too. Oh, and golden raisins!
I really like Brianna’s Real French Vinaigrette—nice and light—though I also like a really good Blue Cheese or Parmesan Peppercorn when I go out to dinner.
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