Health by Colours

And I'm back from my visit to the US of A. It was like a dream, still feels like it. Too short, definitely! I wish I had time for more, so much more; for the beauty, the lovely people, the breezy summers, the culture and not to miss- the food, has captured and made a permanent place in my heart. 

I have to confess, I did gluttonously indulge on the delicious delicious food there, tried quite a few new things and loved it all. Thanks to all the walking there, I didn't put on any more weight! Whew! I simply can't forget, the pancakes from IHOP, the drinks at Hooters, the Japanese food I ate there, the Kung pao chicken at Panda express, the hot dogs at the flagship Pink's, the yummy (I love you with all my heart) bacon, the pizza at Rusty's and so much more...

However, I'm happy to be back, to my reality now, among my lovely readers. Btw, Vegas, can't wait to be back there soon enough!!! 

I've missed you. As thrilling and wonderful my first experience to travel abroad was, I longed to be back to my (not-so-fastidious)schedule of cooking in the kitchen and then sharing it with you. 

Ever since I landed back, the summer here is 'killing me, softly'- just like the song. And its really difficult to eat something that is not light and easy to digest. So I have been trying to eat salads as much as possible. The veggies are not as fresh as they are in the winters here, but as long as I am getting my choice of veggies, I don't mind. 

Dear readers, did you all know that if you eat colourful food, natural ofcourse, you will get almost all the nutrients that you require for a day. The more colourful your food is, the healthier it is. Try eating food of different colours on a regular basis and watch your skin glow and your hair shine. Inspired by the VIBGYOR theme, I thought of making this salad. Feel free to add or leave out anything that you feel like. 

Dedicated to all the veggie lovers out there- yes! we exist!! I have for you this yummy, almost guilt free salad, with store bought dressing. Cu-h-mon, who wants to chop the veggies and even make the dressing at home! Tee hee- our li'l secret. I won't tell if you won't. 

Serves: 4 large servings


Complexity: **


Time taken: 20 mins (including chopping)




You'll need  


1 Medium size lettuce head or a bag of mixed greens
1 quart cherry tomatoes, halved
1 large red onion, cut into half moons
4-5 spring onions/ scallions, greens and whites separated
1 green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into strips
1 avocado, cut into strips
3-4 stalks fresh parsley or/ and 3-4 stalks fresh coriander
handful blue berries/ black berries (optional)
1 large cucumber, peeled, thinly sliced into rounds
2 oranges, peeled, slices cut into halves
bacon crumbs (optional)
low fat Caesar's dressing
Home made croutons
A Pinch of love


Method


Take an empty bowl- a large one, like this,

Start layering according the the colours of the rainbow first goes in violet- the red onion

Did you notice the pretty little salad tossing hands, my purchase from Ikea *big happy smile*. Alright, back to salad assembling, add something blue on hand like berries, I didn't have them on hand. So I went straight to greens


Add the green bell peppers

The sliced cucumbers,

The leafy greens or just lettuce like I did,

The greens of the scallions..... keep layering, quick quick...

Something with both green and yellow- I had an avocado and please don't cut it first before chopping all the other veggies otherwise it will darken in colour like mine did. 

Next comes the yellow bell peppers...

Isn't this all pretty to look at?! There's more to come. Add the halved oranges. 

Then come the halved cherry tomatoes. Don't you just love these sweet red babies!

The rainbow salad's done. Yet I still didn't feel like I was done. I went ahead and added the whites of the scallions, 

Topped it off with a handful of herbs, I went with fresh curly Parsley and coriander. I do reckon, that you would be good with either one as well. 

Add the croutons. Scroll down to see how I made the golden crunchy deliciousness at home. 

Then drizzle about 1/3 rd cup of low fat Caesar's dressing on everything. Even less if you want. You could also just go with 1/3rd cup of lemon juice and a little bit of salt and pepper for the dressing instead. Always a hit! 

Next, the absolutely optional, but to die for 1/3 cup of bacon crumbs. You know I wouldn't indulge in them on an everyday basis but its ok once in a looooooong while....  

Toss, toss, add your pinch of love and toss again and your salad's ready to eat! Gobble it down like I did. Indulge! 

For the home made croutons, take 2 slices of bread, crustier the better. Apply little butter over it. Cut it into small squares, and layer it on a baking tray, buttered side up and pop them in the oven to toast for 5-7 minutes till they turn golden brown.  Your croutons are ready to eat. Use them for salads or to dress up your soups. They taste absolutely delish. Indulge!