[RichardC]

Let me hear some ideas to kick up the flavor of salads with out using dressing... or atleast to change it up.<br><br>
And is it better to use Blue cheese Crumbles versus Blue Cheese dressing?<br><br>
Thanks in Advance

 

["Roberto"]

What are you lookin' for???<br><br>
I use Extra Virgin Olive Oil for mine...

 

[theia]

I love adding fruit to salads. Apples, strawberries, blueberries.<br><br>
Also chopped nuts and dried cranberries.<br><br>
I don't eat blue cheese and I'm not a nutritionist, but my hunch is that real cheese crumbles are going to be much healthier than a creamy dressing! <img alt="smile.gif" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/smile.gif">

 

[RichardC]

<br>
Ideas... just to change it up a bit... I am the Anti Vegetarian in my Diet...<br><br>
I eat Salads and Drink V-8 juice.... and that is about it for my veggies!

 

["Roberto"]

Romaine lettuce<br>
Garbanzos<br>
Sliced green/red/yellow bell peppers (pick one color!!!)<br>
shredded Mozzarella (just not Kraft singles <img alt="wink.gif" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/wink.gif">)<br>
Sunflower seeds<br>
avocado<br><br>
The great thing about salads is that you can mix them up and if you are out of an ingredient, as long as it isn't the lettuce, you can get by without it.

 

[merigayle]

chick peas<br>
sprouts<br>
seeds and/or nuts

 

[lkschiller]

Buffalo chicken salad:<br><br>
This isn't the lowest fat salad in the world but it's very tasty. Put whatever greens and veggies you want in this salad. Then add some of those Buffalo chicken flavored chicken breast strips from Tyson, or make your own (marinate chicken in some Frank's hot sauce and throw it on the grill), and a small amount of reduced fat shredded cheddar or mexican mix (Sargento makes a good one).<br><br>
Instead of dressing you could use the hot sauce again. Or take some real-deal ranch (no reduced fat stuff, it tastes awful), like a tablespoon, and dilute it down with hot sauce to kick up the flavor and keep the fat and calories down.

 

[diablita]

nuts<br>
seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, etc)<br>
garbanzos/chick peas<br>
olives<br>
warm rice (I love a salad with romaine, green olives, red pepper strips and warm rice)<br>
tortilla strips (bake them if you want healthier)<br>
croutons

 

[RichardC]

Thanks there are some great Ideas in here.... Keep them coming

 

["Roberto"]

You could use couscous in place of rice.

 

[merigayle]

I will toss anything into a salad <img alt="smile.gif" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/smile.gif"><br><br>
Also, any type of beans are good. You can make a mexican style salad with shredded lettuce, black beans, salsa, corn, and mexican rice and top with a sprinkle of cheese <img alt="smile.gif" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/smile.gif">

 

["Roberto"]

Oooooh fresh salsa on pretty much any type of salad in place of dressing is awesome.

 

[Sans Souci]

Weird as it sounds, banana slices taste great in a salad. Can even use the slightly overripe ones, which I detest otherwise.<br><br>
If someone had made this suggestion to me, I'd have said "Yuck!" It does work. I like garbanzos, radishes, avocado, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnut pieces, shredded carrot and beet, peashoots, sprouts.<br><br>
Dunno about blue cheese and bananas. I like both but ... together? <img alt="uhoh2.gif" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/uhoh2.gif">

 

[wyrillco]

True dat. I mix mine with a little FF ranch (the only way I like FF) and it's a creamy salsa-y dressing. Yum.<br><br>
I have just discovered goat cheese. I'm putting on a salad tonight. I had it on pizza last night. How did I go this long and never try it?

 

[Grizzly]

Black beans, chick peas, kidney beans.<br>
Artichokes<br>
Feta cheese

 

[RandMart]

First of all let me say this ... <i>"Salad is not food; it's what food eats."</i><br><br>
Now then ...<br><br>
D'Wife adds cooked chicken, black beans, garbanzos, walnuts, grapes or blueberries, orange slices, and pignoli to her dark green salads, topping it off with Ken's Lite Creamy Parmesan.<br><br>
I takes take that, and add pepper flakes of a couple shots of Tabasco or Frank's Red Hot.

 

[JohnnyB]

rice wine vinegar (unseasoned) is tangy and tasty and calorie/sodium free. So be generous with it.<br><br>
I add half cup black beans, about 3oz. turkey breast and some sambal oelek chili paste for a kick.

 

[RandMart]

We picked up a recipe in the Canaries that combines chicken, bananas and cheese [I'm not sure what they used there, but we use Asiago (for gooey-ness), Romano and Feta (for flavor)]<br><br>
The sweetness of the bananas offsets the saltiness of the cheese so very nicely.

 

[RandMart]

I forgot the olives; black and green.<br><br><i>Seriously, this thing's about the size of a dodgeball when she's got it all together.</i>

 

[muzicgrl]

I like to cook up veggies and put them on a bed of lettuce. Then you can use veggies that you couldnt otherwise use in a salad (yellow onions, eggplant, squash, etc).