Salad Recipes

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Inka

Inka

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Starting this salad recipe thread thanks to @Toffee1 and our chat about more interesting salad recipes to jazz up veg. All this salads can be amended with your choice of protein or carbs, and any ingredients not to your taste can be omitted or substituted. I’ll add a few recipes as and when I have time, but do feel free to add your favourite salad recipes too. It would be nice to have a resource to look at for inspiration and variety.

This is a simple light salad I like for lunch. I have it with sourdough bread and hummus, but you can have what suits you. Having berries in a salad sounds a bit strange, but the mix of fruitiness, lemon and pepperiness from the rocket and basil goes well. Multiply up the quantities as needed. This serves One:


Italian Lemon and Basil Salad - Serves 1

Approx 40g of rocket leaves, rinsed
Half an avocado
2 tablespoons of cooked chickpeas from a tin
2 large strawberries, sliced
1 tablespoon of blueberries
6 or 8 walnut halves
Half a lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
4-8 basil leaves
Salt and black pepper

Arrange the rocket leaves spread out flat on a plate. Slice the avocado and put the slices over the salad. Sprinkle the chickpeas over the salad. Add the strawberry slices, the blueberries, and the walnuts, arranging them on top of the salad. Tear up the basil leaves and sprinkle over. Squeeze over the juice from the lemon half, drizzle over 2 or 3 teaspoons of the olive oil, and add salt and pepper. If you prefer, you can make the lemon, oil, salt and pepper into a dressing separately and then pour it over the salad, but I’m lazy and like to save on washing up so don’t. (You can also use frozen chopped basil if you don’t want to buy fresh leaves. Just sprinkle a couple of teaspoons over.)
 
Lunch salad today -
mixed leaves, 1 large tomato diced, cucumber, 1/4 orange pepper, 2 spring onions, 3 purple radishes, 6 walnut halves, 80g bacon lardons and some fried mushrooms. Drizzled with balsamic vinegar.
Served with 30g camembert and a large spoon of coleslaw.

tbh that could easily feed 2, it was a good bowl full!
 
My mum's epic salad (feeds 4 as accompaniment):

iceberg lettuce
watercress or spinach leaves or any leaves of your choice
sliced tomatoes
cucumber
mixed peppers
sliced granny smith's apple
segmented orange (peel and cut segments out)
2 sliced (and then halved) peeled kiwis

balsamic vinegar/olive oil dressing.

It tastes amazing.
 
EllsBells said:
My mum's epic salad (feeds 4 as accompaniment):

iceberg lettuce
watercress or spinach leaves or any leaves of your choice
sliced tomatoes
cucumber
mixed peppers
sliced granny smith's apple
segmented orange (peel and cut segments out)
2 sliced (and then halved) peeled kiwis

balsamic vinegar/olive oil dressing.

It tastes amazing.
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With all these lovely salad suggestions it just shows salad does not need to be BORIING !!!!.
 
What the..? said:
These all look lovely. I also think a sprinkling of chopped spring onion can perk up any salad.
Tonight I'm having smoked mackerel with a chuck-it-all-in salad, green beans, and maybe two or three small new potatoes.
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Hear hear! I'm a big fan of mixed leaves with Mediterranean or other roast veg, toasted pine nuts and some cheese sprinkled on it. omnomnomnom.
 
I take a large bowl to the fridge and fill it with whatever there is, then take the bowl's twin - I tend to buy two of most things - I think the two halves of my brain don't communicate - and chop up what I have found, add some sort of dressing and then eat it.
There are no cherry tomatoes in my fridge - they are being made sweeter and sweeter - just compare the taste of one with a normal one.
 
Last 2 nights I've tried something I've never done before and just had a salad for evening meal. Usually I'd have carbs in some form either with it or after it like a baked potato or pasta.

I had rocket leaves and then put cherry tomatoes, cucumber, peppers and some salty olives in a bowl and virgin olive oil and apple cider vinegar mix up and add to rocket. add boiled eggs and smoked mackerel (classic combo).

It felt so weird not having carbs I had to have some after the first night so had peanut butter on toast.

Just trying to work out what to bolus with such a low/non carb meal and no PPS...post prandial spike.

Generally feel like I need to be less carb heavy in the evenings.
 
I love pea shoots... a bag of those and a bag of rocket go a long way... or use watercress. I combine the leaves with still warm cubes of roasted butternut squash, roasted beetroot with fennel seeds cut into wedges (if you can't be bothered to use raw beetroot buy one of those cheap vac packs that are not in vinegar and roast for a short while with the fennel seeds) and add some pecan nuts (even better caramellised but that does add some carbs). Top with cucumber cut into ribbons, some pomegranate seeds and a squirt or two of balsamic glaze. Basically you can add any roasted veg such as peppers.

Or, I make a leafy salad, add cold cooked salmon, warm minted new potatoes, warm green beans and peas.
 
I like the leafy salad with tomatoes on the vine, cucumber and red pepper, so really boring lol! but I'm not a fan of salad dressing. I make my own standard coleslaw with shredded white cabbage, grated carrot and a bit of red onion, mixed with mayo.
 
I forgot... add feta and mint to any salad and it picks it up no end. I use lots of herbs in with the mixed leaves with most salads. Pomegranate also. Plus griddled peaches or nectarines. When we're permitted a few girlfriends and I have a lunch club. We take it in turns to host and nearly always it's something like pate with melba toast, or prawn cocktail or quiche or crab gratin and a side salad. We sort of compete to make the most interesting salads.
 
Enjoy salads, have it as main meal or as side with sandwich. Friday night made one, chopped iceberg lettuce rocket toms beetroot springs cucumber strawberries stilton cheese, had salad with bbq style chicken breast & bake at home bread roll.
 
Inka said:
Starting this salad recipe thread thanks to @Toffee1 and our chat about more interesting salad recipes to jazz up veg. All this salads can be amended with your choice of protein or carbs, and any ingredients not to your taste can be omitted or substituted. I’ll add a few recipes as and when I have time, but do feel free to add your favourite salad recipes too. It would be nice to have a resource to look at for inspiration and variety.

This is a simple light salad I like for lunch. I have it with sourdough bread and hummus, but you can have what suits you. Having berries in a salad sounds a bit strange, but the mix of fruitiness, lemon and pepperiness from the rocket and basil goes well. Multiply up the quantities as needed. This serves One:


Italian Lemon and Basil Salad - Serves 1

Approx 40g of rocket leaves, rinsed
Half an avocado
2 tablespoons of cooked chickpeas from a tin
2 large strawberries, sliced
1 tablespoon of blueberries
6 or 8 walnut halves
Half a lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
4-8 basil leaves
Salt and black pepper

Arrange the rocket leaves spread out flat on a plate. Slice the avocado and put the slices over the salad. Sprinkle the chickpeas over the salad. Add the strawberry slices, the blueberries, and the walnuts, arranging them on top of the salad. Tear up the basil leaves and sprinkle over. Squeeze over the juice from the lemon half, drizzle over 2 or 3 teaspoons of the olive oil, and add salt and pepper. If you prefer, you can make the lemon, oil, salt and pepper into a dressing separately and then pour it over the salad, but I’m lazy and like to save on washing up so don’t. (You can also use frozen chopped basil if you don’t want to buy fresh leaves. Just sprinkle a couple of teaspoons over.)
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Aww thank you Inka. I will include these ingredients in my shopping this week. Xx
 
This is another fairly substantial salad recipe. If you eat meat and/or fish, add pieces of cooked chicken breast sprinkled over the top, or chunks of cooked salmon fillet, or even some of the cooked hot smoked salmon that comes in large flakes. It’s beautifully fresh and green with a creamy dressing with a zing of lime and garlic:

Green Machine Salad - Serves 2

7 tblsp Greek Yoghurt
Juice of one lime
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
150g approx of broccoli
2 heads of Sweet Gem Lettuce or one head of Romaine lettuce
1 medium avocado
2 or 3 spring onions
8-12 fresh basil leaves
Salt and pepper

First make the dressing: juice the lime into a small bowl, then add the crushed garlic, the Greek yoghurt and salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir carefully and put in the fridge while you get the salad ready.
Cut the broccoli into small florets add to a saucepan of water, bring to the boil and cook for 2 minutes only. Drain and rinse under running cold water. Set aside. Chop up the lettuce and spread on a plate (or two plates if you’re doing it in individual servings). Slice the spring onions finely and sprinkle evenly over the lettuce. Slice the avocado and arrange the slices over the lettuce too. Place the cooled broccoli florets on the salad, then tear up the basil leaves and sprinkle on top.
Add cold cooked chicken breast chunks or cold salmon chunks (or a 220g tin of butter beans for a veggie option). Then dollop large blobs of the dressing over the salad and serve.
 
Pattidevans said:
I love pea shoots... a bag of those and a bag of rocket go a long way... or use watercress. I combine the leaves with still warm cubes of roasted butternut squash, roasted beetroot with fennel seeds cut into wedges (if you can't be bothered to use raw beetroot buy one of those cheap vac packs that are not in vinegar and roast for a short while with the fennel seeds) and add some pecan nuts (even better caramellised but that does add some carbs). Top with cucumber cut into ribbons, some pomegranate seeds and a squirt or two of balsamic glaze. Basically you can add any roasted veg such as peppers.

Or, I make a leafy salad, add cold cooked salmon, warm minted new potatoes, warm green beans and peas.
Click to expand...
Sorry going off topic a big but pea shoots are the easiest thing to grow. Old mushroom box/butter tub? Perfect. Pack it with dried peas and pop on a windowsill and within a week or two you will have your hearts content worth of pea shoots!
 
Peely66 said:
Last 2 nights I've tried something I've never done before and just had a salad for evening meal. Usually I'd have carbs in some form either with it or after it like a baked potato or pasta.

I had rocket leaves and then put cherry tomatoes, cucumber, peppers and some salty olives in a bowl and virgin olive oil and apple cider vinegar mix up and add to rocket. add boiled eggs and smoked mackerel (classic combo).

It felt so weird not having carbs I had to have some after the first night so had peanut butter on toast.

Just trying to work out what to bolus with such a low/non carb meal and no PPS...post prandial spike.

Generally feel like I need to be less carb heavy in the evenings.
Click to expand...
A good option here would be to add a grain to your salad. Adding rice, bulgar wheat or cius cous adds a bit if carb (obviously as little or as much as you like here) and because they're longer GI foods tend not to spike BG too much.
 
Brussels sprout salad
Recipe by Felicity Cloake, food writer.
Serves 2

I hate Brussel sprouts but will eat them as a salad with turkey & ham pie.

400g raw brussels sprouts, trimmed and finely shredded
Handful of pecans, roughly chopped
6 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp fresh cranberry sauce
Zest of ½ orange
 
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