I’m not very good at eating my greens. I’m sure I’ve said that many times. Part of my problem is I only like vegetables certain ways. For example, broccoli must be cooked and usually eaten with copious amounts of melted cheese. Same for kale and spinach. I also do not like raw brussels sprouts, cauliflower or mushrooms. Carrots must be raw. I can’t stand cooked carrots. Even when they are in soup I usually pick them out if possible. I hate celery, raw or cooked. But I love celery salt, oddly. I don’t really care all that much for green beans or snow peas. They’re OK. I usually avoid them. I will pass on any type of sprout.
Let’s move on to salads. I am amazed at people who go out to eat and get salad. Does anyone really love salad that much to make it an entree? Or are they trying to be healthy? Because most salads are laden with fatty dressing and dressed up with high fat food items like crispy onion straws or tortilla chips, cheese, creamy sauces, etc. Also, there are so many other better things to eat when you’re at a restaurant. Like a bacon cheeseburger.
That being said, I am a huge fan of a starter salad. I find starter salads light and interesting and usually healthy. So I made it my goal to eat a starter salad every day-ish prior to eating dinner so that I can get some of those dang greens in. I started with a salad that my sister made for us when she was here over Christmas: arugula, parmesan cheese and dressing. That’s it. And it’s amazing!
I’m not quite sure what recipe my sister followed, but I found a good one at epicurious.com.
ingredients.
- ½ lb. fresh arugula
- ¼ c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (approximately 2 lemons)
- ½ c. good olive oil
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- very good Parmesan cheese
directions.
- Fill a bowl with cold water and toss the arugula for a few minutes to clean. Spin-dry the leaves and place them in a large bowl or large plastic bag
- In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Pour enough dressing on the arugula to moisten.
- Toss well (close the bag and shake it) and place the salad on individual plates. Top with parmesan cheese.
The first time I made this I forgot to add the oil in with the rest of the ingredients. The salad was still good I just couldn’t figure out why it was a bit dry. The second time I made it, I remembered to add the oil and it was just as good as I remembered it to be from Christmas.
Recipe rating:
Food Snob 