Suchit's Napa Cabbage Salad V1

Suchit brought this delicious salad to my house for dinner the other day. I managed to convince her that the left overs should remain with me. :D

The nutrition facts were made at Calorie Count.

Napa Cabbage Salad V1

Salad ingredients:

1 head Napa cabbage, chopped
1 daikon radish, sliced to 1 inch "fingers"
1 cup carrot, shredded
2 serrano pepper, red preferred, sliced thinly
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Dressing Ingredients:

10 cloves garlic, minced or ground with mortar and pestle
3 T good quality fish sauce
3 T fresh lime juice
1 T sugar

Directions:

Prepare and toss the salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Mix the dressing and toss with the salad.

Catnmoos' Bread and Mashed Potato Filling

In the coal region of Pennsylvania, Catnmoos says, we don't call what goes inside a turkey stuffing or dressing, we call it FILLING....maybe for two reasons...because we fill the bird, and because it then fills us!

The surprising nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Bread and Mashed Potato Filling

Ingredients:

3 sticks of celery, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter

1 egg

1 cup milk

1 tsp sage

1/2 t garlic powder

2 cups mashed potatoes

two loaves of bread, cubed (approximately 8 cups)

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium heat, sweat the celery and onion in a stick of butter.  Add in the egg and the cup of milk, stir. Add The seasonings and stir. Stir in the mashed potatoes. Place the cubed bread in a large bowl and gently stir in the heated mixture.

You can either stuff the bird with the mix and roast, or do as Catnmoos does and place the mix in a Pam sprayed pan. Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes. Baste the pan with the liquid from the pan that is cooking your turkey or chicken. Always use an instant read thermometer to make sure stuffing is done to about 170 degrees - whether in the bird or out!

Janice's Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

Serves 2 on large salads (40 calories)
Serves 3 on medium salads (30 calories)

Ingredients:

2 T 0% fat Greek Yogurt
1 T light mayonnaise
1 T low fat buttermilk
1 t lemon juice
1/4 t Dijon mustard
1/8 t onion powder
1/8 t garlic powder
1/8 t dried parsley flakes
1/4 t minced shallot
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Measure and mix all ingredients together in a bowl shortly before serving - either on a salad or as a veggie dip. Taste and increase individual seasonings to your taste, this is a very fragrant, but mild starter dressing.

Notes:

Increase the proportions by doubling to match the number of guests.

Easily thinned with more buttermilk or use less buttermilk for a thicker consistency and dip veggie into it. 


Consider adding a little celery seed or chives or other fresh herb minced fine.

If you make it ahead of time and it gets too thick sitting in the fridge, just add a little buttermilk (1/2 teaspoon at a time) til it's just right.

For some of you, the shallot will be too intense of a flavor, so you may want to use a little less and taste to see if you like it.

Can be stored in a little sealed container for a few days, but dressing is best made fresh so don't make too big a batch.

Janice's Basic Vinaigrette

I don't use much bottled dressing because this is so easy - once I read the ingredient labels I found it very hard to use the bottled stuff on my salads. Warning: Only read those labels if you plan to start making your own dressing. Once nice thing is, I don't have to worry about storage as it makes just enough for the two of us. So I never have to play the "just how old IS this bottle" game. So easy to increase portions if you do want to make a few days worth or have a large family. Also easy to adjust in a million ways, so read the Notes section below!

The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Basic Vinaigrette

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1 garlic clove, minced - or equivalent dried garlic
1 t lemon juice, fresh squeezed
1 t balsamic vinegar
1 T olive oil
salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a small bowl such as a custard cup, mix well with a fork and put on the salads right before dinner.

Notes:

My favorite California olive oil comes from Sciabica! You can get a lot of good info on olive oil at their website to help you select the perfect oil for your salad.

For variety, use only lemon juice, only vinegar, swap the proportions of vinegar and oil, add a bit of Dijon mustard (my fave), or a bit of dried ground mustard. Also good is a bit of onion powder or shallot minced fine. Use this as a starter and then adjust it totally to your taste for each day.

Make sure you use freshly squeezed lemon juice and that your vinegar, if balsamic, is from Modena. You can easily change the vinegar to any type you prefer - wine, garlic infused, etc.

Laura's Caprese Pita & Lemon Flax Vinaigrette

When counting calories, it's easy to get into a rut at each meal and eat the same thing over and over until you just cannot face it anymore and pig out on something else. This sandwich is a great alternative to that tired old turkey sandwich or salad for lunch.

Laura's quick and easy "flexitarian" sandwich is a good source of fiber/protein and her flexitarian ingredient suggestions are in parenthesis. The recipe was analyzed for calories and nutrition using the first ingredient listed.

The nutrition facts for this delicious sandwich can be found at Calorie Count!

Caprese Pita (1 sandwich)

Ingredients:

1 oz. fresh mozzarella, chopped (alternative:  1/4 cup white beans, rinsed/drained - or add both as Laura does!)

1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1 tbsp pine nuts

2 tbsp low fat Italian dressing or Lemon-Flax Vinaigrette (see below)

1 whole-wheat pita pocket, cut in half

Directions:

Mix mozzarella and/or beans, tomatoes, basil, pine nuts and dressing together.  Stuff mixture into pita halves. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts for Vinaigrette.

Lemon-Flax Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

1/4 C lemon juice (1-2 lemons)

1/4 C flaxseed oil

1/4 C white balsamic vinegar

 1 T Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, minced

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Whisk ingredients and place in a small jar with a lid; lasts in the refrigerator for about 7 days.