Salads!

[o4fuxache]

Okay so I've been asked on several occasions about making salads. I guess because I'm always talking about them, and every time people do a public ask for help on losing weight, I pick up the pom pons and give three cheers for salad

Comments

[maccaj]

also if you love love love croutons and can't imagine salad without them, you can make your own.

1. Find a bread that you like. Wheat is healthier, obviously, but the most important thing is to use something with *flavor*... if you're going to add calories, make sure you're not using mass produced white bread, which is nothing but calories and air! So find a nice actual *loaf* that you enjoy - french, italian, pumpernickel, challah - anything goes. If the store you're shopping at makes its own bread on site, they will even slice it for you, just like the deli counter... just pick your loaf and pass it to the guy behind the counter, and tell him how thick/thin you want the slices. My local Publix makes a bread with flax seed and pumpkin seeds, which is delicious and healthy, and pretty low cal for bread.

2. Toast your bread. Toaster, toaster oven, broiler, whatever strikes your fancy.

3. Cut a clove of garlic in half and rub the cut side all over the toast. The garlic oils will naturally stick to all the toasted crevices. I rub garlic on both sides, but I like my croutons *very* garlicky.

4. (optional) sprinkle herbs, "Mrs. Dash" type mixes, or (my fave), herb mixes made for "bread dipping", on the toast. The oils from the garlic will cause the herbs to adhere to the toast. You can find "bread dipping" herb mixes at any grocery store, on the herb/spice aisle. They're great combinations (sundried tomato and basil, sicilian, etc) and a little chunkier, so you can use less and still get more flavor than regular dried herbs.

5. Wait five minutes or so, so that the herbs can stick to the toast a bit. Then, cube the bread (go small - big croutons = starchy salad, which is not good eats.)

6. Store the croutons in a zip top bag in a cool dry place. They'll keep just fine for 3-6 months. If they get crunched up or start to taste stale, just crunch them up the rest of the way and use them for flavored "breading", e.g. on baked chicken. (cooking them as breading will remove the stale taste.)

So there you go - health*ier* (and more tasty) croutons. The same process work for garlic bread, btw, and takes the butter out of the equation entirely. Believe me, if you use a bread you like and find an herb mix you like, you won't miss it.