Got the boring salad blues? Put down your fork and back away from that bowl of iceberg lettuce… and the bottle of bland dressing.
We’ve compiled this handy list of six simple ways to help you spruce up your salad – so your lettuce will never go lonely again!
1. Try a DIY dressing. There are plenty of delicious bottled salad dressings, but why not drizzle your greens with a homemade concoction? Here’s one of my favorites (this recipe yields 1/2 cup of dressing):
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1 Tablespoon water
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
2. Go nuts. An easy way to add some excitement to your salad? Top it with nuts, seeds or both! There are plenty of options to suit your salad preferences — a sprinkling of slivered almonds syncs up with sweet strawberries, a spoonful of sunflower seeds matches well with colorful carrots and a handful of pecans pairs nicely with, well, pears – yum!
3. Include colorful veggies. Tomatoes, carrots and cucumbers are standard – but what about colorful sweet peppers, avocados, red onions, peas and radishes? Experiment with different vegetables to find your favorite salad combination.
4. Beat boredom with beans. Add some much needed flavor – and filling fiber – to your usual bland salad by tossing in chickpeas (garbanzo beans), black beans or pinto beans.
5. Go for different greens. Tired of iceberg, romaine and spinach? Switch things up by using different salad greens, such as watercress, kale, mustard greens and arugula. Be sure to wash your greens before eating, even if you opt for a pre-packaged variety.
6. Don’t forget dried fruit. Keep that lonely lettuce company by tossing in some dried fruit – cranberries, blueberries, goji berries, raisins, pears, even apples. Not only are they sweet and flavorful, they can provide vitamins and antioxidants, too!