Salads are an easy way to fill your plate with lots of healthy ingredients–more greens, more veggies, more fiber. It’s one of the best ways I know to be plant strong. And as the weather heats up, I prefer getting my veggies raw so I won’t have to be cooking over a hot stove. So salads fit the bill in my kitchen.
Salad is one of the top foods we turn to when we’re trying to lose some weight. It’s pretty well known that salad fixings are low in calories. So they’re a safe bet when we want to drop some pounds. Right?
Well…it all depends on what we put on the salad. That’s where the calories can really add up. If I douse my Caesar salad with 2 tablespoons of Caesar salad dressing, I’m going to get 158 more calories and 16 grams of fat. Ranch is a little less–with 145 calories. What about a simple oil and vinegar dressing to top off your salad? Simple is better, isn’t it? Well, not in this case. Because a single serving still has 144 calories with 14 grams of fat.
Ranch Dressing
Ingredients
- 15 ounce block of silken tofu
- 1 T dried chives
- 2 T dried parsley
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 3 T lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 cup soy or almond milk
Instructions
- Place tofu in the blender or food processor and blend til smooth. Add remaining ingredients and blend til creamy and smooth. Add a little water if your blender needs a little help to keep process-ing.
And we’re talking refined fats, which aren’t the best choice for healthy arteries and heart-smart health. Fats from whole foods like nuts and seeds, olives and avocados are much better since they come with the fiber in tact. Dr. Joel Kahn, a cardiologist for over 30 years, reminds us, “Heart disease, which is often associated with a high-fat diet, kills more people than any other chronic disease.” And oil can lead to a higher risk for heart disease.
“All oils are processed food sources,” Kahn explains. “that are dense in calories and pure fat. Oils have no fiber and many of the nutrients are found in the original whole food source are removed. Adding 1 to 2 tablespoons of freshly ground flaxseed is an insurance policy to reach daily needs for essential fats for your health.”
Is it possible to make a tasty and creamy dressing without using oil? Absolutely! One of our favorites is Ranch dressing. It is made creamy with soft or silken tofu, a little plant-based milk, lemon juice and some delicious herbs and vegetables. It’s simple to do in your blender. I start out by cutting the tofu in chunks and placing it in the blender along with the soy milk and lemon juice. In a few minutes, the dressing will be smooth and creamy. Then I toss in 3 garlic cloves, all minced up; let that process for about a minute or until you see no garlic pieces in the dressing. Add the remaining ingredients and process until all is creamy and smooth. If your blender needs a little help in processing, add some water one tablespoon at a time to keep it running properly. If you want a thinner dressing, you can also add a little bit more milk.
Pour the dressing in a sealed jar or your favorite dressing container. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve. This recipe serves 8. Each serving only has 42 calories with 1.6 grams of total fat! But don’t let that fool you–it’s loaded with creamy flavor and is a wonderful addition to any salad you’d like to make. I hope you’ll give it a thumb’s up, just like many of our members did at our New Start Cooking Club.
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