It’s Salad Season!! Fresh veggies galore~ Let’s just say to start, I really don’t love salad. Part because of my allergies but part because I just don’t like pre-food. (that’s what my husband calls it.) So back when I went to Fitness Ridge (now called Movara) they had an open salad bar. You can see my post about Fitness Ridge AKA Movara {HERE} and my 12 things I learned {HERE}. Our calories were kept under close watch. But if you really needed more or just liked it, you could have as much salad as you like. It was huge. And I really didn’t know I liked salad until it was presented to me in this way. So I decided when I came home I was going to do that too. My kids are so, so salad eaters but they were willing to try.
I came home after an amazing week. I learned so much. You can see my experience here and here. It was truly a life changing event in my life. I am taking my nutrition, health and fitness in my own hands and trying to make a difference. One of the ways I am doing this is by presenting my kids with a salad bar. I found when I gave my kids choices for toppings they were much more willing to eat the veggies. I found some small custard dishes from Walmart to put my variety in and made this cool Lazy Susan Spinner for the dinner table.
Now my kids can spin and pick the veggies they want on their plates. I can’t believe the difference it had made for my older kids. If we go a few days with out the salad bar because we are out of town or busy, they are asking for me to make them a salad. They have recognized that eating healthy make them feel better.
I always start with a spinach mix. My kids like it best but you could use any kind of lettuce or salad mix.
I like to change out my toppings for variety but here is a list of ideas I like to use.
Ham, chicken or turkey chunks
Hard boiled eggs
sunflower seeds
nuts of choice
cheese: any. Our favorites are feta and cheddar
tomatoes
broccoli
cauliflower
carrots
small peppers
sugar snap peas or regular peas
radishes
craisins or raisins
bacon bits
or whatever you find looking good in the produce aisle. These are just a few of my kids favorites!
For my salad dressing I like to make my own. Many store bought kinds have lots of preservatives I can’t pronounce so I make my own. I use the ranch dressing mix from the store and mix it with Fage plain yogurt. I usually add a little milk to thin it out. It will last in your fridge for about 1 week. I buy the reusable squirt bottles from Wal-mart to keep it in. You could also make your own vinaigrette if you are keeping calories down.
Salad Lazy Susan DIY
To make my Lazy Susan I purchased a large round piece of wood from Lowes. It comes pre cut and sanded. Then using s special drill bit, I cut out small circles about 1/4 inch into the wood. After sanding it well I painted, stained and put a coat of polyurethane on it. I let it dry over night and screwed the lazy susan spinner onto the bottom. I found my lazy susan hardware at Home depot. IT cost about $5. Use the screws that come with it. Find center and screw it it. And it is ready to spin and serve! Total cost of my lazy susan was about $15. So inexpensive and the perfect thing for my DIY salad bar. The kids love it!
