When I was younger, I relished in my grandmother's meatloaf recipe. Lush platefuls of dark red meat, Sundays spent munching on fried chicken, and the taste of a hot dog after a long day spent swimming in the pool: these were my favorite kinds of food.
Fast forward to ninth grade, when I decided to become a vegetarian alongside my best friend, Montana. Though I was officially an herbivore during this period of my life, I detested salad. I claimed to hate the texture of lettuce, the taste of spinach, the bitterness of kale. I was an herbivore who survived on macaroni and cheese and baked potato soup (of which my mother makes the best).
Now, years later, I've made many switches from being an herbivore to an omnivore and back again. Regardless of what I categorize myself as, salads have become one of my absolute favorite meals.
Long gone are the days in which I whined about the taste of lettuce - now, I heap piles and piles of it into my bowl, characterizing my salads with beets, chickpeas, onions, cauliflower, and every kind of addition you can think of.
Salads can be bland and boring - this much is true. If you currently don't fancy a bowl of greens, but want to give salads another chance, try out these salad mixtures, and get excited to eat healthy.
First of all, the greens.
Spinach is my "green" of choice. I typically correlate kale with fruity salads, characterized by dried cranberries and blueberries, slivered almonds and a raspberry vinaigrette. Though that sounds delicious, I prefer savory salads. For a delicious, savory salad, try my favorite combination: roasted butternut squash, chickpeas, and green peas, all atop a humongous bed of lettuce and drizzled with Italian or Green Goddess dressing. This salad will fill you up, and you'll be dreaming about the taste of the butternut squash for days to come.
Second, the additions.
You don't have to like variety to enjoy your salad. You can keep it simple, if you'd like, or you can go a little crazy. Whatever your stomach is begging for, you can add to a salad. When I'm feeling simple, I'll throw some black olives and marinated artichoke hearts onto a bed of spinach or lettuce and munch on the simple, yet delicious, result. If I'm feeling a little more hungry, I love to combine beets, red onions, chickpeas, cauliflower, and broccoli atop my greens. There are endless combinations to feast upon!
Lastly, the dressing.
Now it is time for the pièce de résistance, the icing on the cake - the choice of dressing for your masterpiece. Like I said before, I am not the biggest fan of fruity salads, so I tend to stick to the more savory dressings: think Italian, Balsamic Vinaigrette, Green Goddess, Asian Sesame Ginger. Take a brief account of the additions you made to your salad - what kind of taste do you hope to pull from them? If you've added the artichoke and olives, I suggest going with the Italian; if you've added in tons of veggies, like cauliflower, broccoli, and beets, I would suggest going with a Green Goddess (it's like a more savory, healthier Ranch); and if you have a simple salad like a Caprese, with tomato, basil, and mozzarella cheese atop a bed of spinach, go for the Balsamic Vinaigrette.
In the hopes of encouraging you to try out one of my favorite salad recipes, I worked up quite the appetite. Sneak out to the grocery store today to pick up some delicious additions and dressings for your future masterpieces. Bon appetit!
