With summer in full swing, I crave lush salads, but they have to be hit the spot and fill my belly.
We have the most beautiful ingredients and produce available to us.
I can’t resist a ripe, blushing tomato, creamy avocado and sweet juicy mangoes, melon and pineapple.
Add meat to your salad
I adore adding meat to salads (this is an absolute must for the husband too).
Crispy bacon, char-grilled chicken, Parma ham, seared tuna, left-over roasted meat or vegetables, smoked salmon, grilled prawns and juicy, rare slices of steak.
Ooh, and let’s not forget the myriad of cheeses one can add. Gooey brie, melt-in-your-mouth Danish feta or goats cheese, creamy blue cheese. Sigh… I can go on and on.
How do I make my salad belly-filling?
There are endless ways to transform a salad into something gorgeously delicious and belly filling:
– Play around with low GI grains like quinoa, barley, couscous and brown rice.
– Add seasonal fruit (pomegranate, pineapple, granny smith apple, peaches).
– Grill or roast your veggies to bring out their flavour.
– Experiment and make your own unique salad dressings.
– Salad doesn’t have to be cold, try a “warm” salad.
– Make your own bacon crumble – just grill until crispy and pop in a food processor or finely chop. Bacon makes everything taste better?.
– Add mixed seeds and nuts.
– Incorporate legumes into your salads (lentils, cannellini beans, butterbeans etc). They’re a great source of protein and are low GI.
– Make use of fresh herbs – they make all the difference.
– Roll your salad in a wrap.
Are you feeling the salad love?
7 Inspired belly filling salads
1. Grilled peach and Parma ham salad – with rocket, parmesan, pomegranate and pumpkin seeds.
2. Warm salad of hot smoked salmon, asparagus and new potatoes – This is just too luscious and oh so comforting..
3. Prawn, papaya and avo salad – with a homemade red pepper mayo – replace papaya with mango if you like, delish!
4. Roasted butternut, beetroot and avo salad – with sweet roasted garlic dressing – YUM!
5. Asian steak salad – rare slices of steak with greens and a punchy dressing.
6. Chicken quinoa salad – with yoghurt dressing. Fresh, delicious, uber healthy.
7. Ultimate Caesar salad – a Caesar salad “on steroids”.
Follow Carey on Twitter – @bitsofcarey and she is a contributor to Crush Magazine Online.