Big, low-cal salads that are not boring...

When I started studying the nutrition plan I am on through Kaia, I was amazed at the SIZE of the salads they recommend for lunch. They each started with 4-cups of leafy greens, and piled on from there! Whole carrots, whole cucumbers, whole peppers and onion, PLUS! 

For a person who likes to eat, but is trying to lose weight, the relief of this is that I'm able to eat enough to not be hungry. Because, let's be real, that's what we all associate the word "diet" with ... hunger. That's one reason I prefer to call it a nutrition plan. That says more about the choices I'm making, not what I'm sacrificing.

Along the way, I have learned to make big, low-cal salads adjusted to my tastes and preferences, essentially creating new salads of my own. Those are what I am sharing with you here. You'll have to sign up and receive a Kaia Kookbook to delve their recipes. ;)

What I've also done is created a "Base Salad" that all my other salads are built on. This gives me 5 key ingredients I know I need to keep in the house - already prepped and cut, if possible.

Base salad = 3-4 cups romaine (1 head), 1 small sweet baby bell pepper thinly sliced, 1/8  cup thinly sliced sweet onion, 1 carrot shredded, 1/3 english cucumber shredded. 75 cal.

Obviously, you can add wonderful things of your own choosing to your own base, or omit what doesn't appeal to you, like onions. I also like to throw in chopped kale or fresh spinach leaves if I have them in the fridge.

Then comes the fun part! Adding protein and extra flavor. These are the four varieties I have on a regular basis, so I'm sure to keep ingredients for them on-hand. (Another reason for having a few formulas to stick to - ease of shopping.)

Mexican: add ½ c. black beans, 1 small haas avocado, ½ c. salsa

Asian: add ¼ c. almond slivers, ¼ c. sliced pea pods, ¼ c. mandarin orange slices, drizzle with bragg’s liquid amino acids (or soy sauce)

Greek: add ¼ c. sliced olives, ¼ c. crumbled feta, drizzle with balsamic vinegar

Lentils: add ½ c. Trader Joe’s precooked lentils, drizzle with 1 T. olive oil and balsamic vinegar

NOTES:
- All of these salads are about 300 calories (including the 75 from the base salad)
- The shredding of the carrots and cucumbers is something I've found really enhances the texture of the salad, so I shred 1 lb of carrots in the food processor at the beginning of the week and store in 1 quart ziploc bag for a quick grab. (One carrot is about 1/2 cup, shredded)
- You'll notice each of these salads avoids using a traditional dressing because, for my needs, they add too many calories from fat and sugar. 
- If  you want to add calories to the Greek salad, an ounce of sliced dry salami is wonderful. I've cut it for the next 6-weeks, but like to add it when I'm off BRIK.
- The pre-cooked lentils at Trader Joe's are in the refrigerated part of the produce section. They are perfectly seasoned and tasty. If you haven't eaten lentils before, they are like small beans in texture and flavor.

I would encourage you to play with these simple recipes and see if you like them, or can change them to make them your own. The key here is finding a few combinations that work well enough for you that they are easy to keep ingredients on-hand for, and quick and easy to make, and tasty enough that you will choose to eat them on a regular basis.

Tomorrow we'll talk about a way to make these even easier for those of you eating lunch from work!

The Mexican Salad.

 (I have to tell you, at first I felt SO indulgent eating this big salad full of avocado! It is definitely one of my favorites.)

The Greek Salad with salami added, off BRIK (if you add it, it is about 100 calories)