Roy Holt - Salads Cookbook: 25 Healthy and Delicious Salads Recipes

Take a fresh look at salads and youll see there are a lot of exciting developments in the salad bowl. Banished forever is the image of salads as dull diet food consisting of little more than limp lettuce and soggy, flavorless tomatoes. Today, salads are among the ultimate health foods. They can contain an exciting variety of colorful, delicious and satisfying ingredients that provide the nutrients essential for healthy living. Youll find plenty of inspiration in this book for a cornucopia of healthy salads for all occasions, from light lunches and family meals to stylish dinner parties. And, remember, salads arent just for summer. We have plenty of ideas for salads that brighten and lighten winter mealtimes, too.

In fact, once you get into the habit of thinking salad while menu planning, ideas will also come to you whatever the time of the year as you push your trolley along the supermarket aisles or stop at the cheese counter or produce department. Salads are versatile enough to cater for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike. Meat, seafood and poultry are ideal salad ingredients, along with the perhaps more commonly used lettuce and other leaves, vegetables, fruit, herbs, nuts, seeds, grains, pulses and cheese. And with so many ingredients to choose from, salads can be as simple and light or complex and filling as you like. They also have an added bonus in that they are versatile enough to fit easily into all your meal plans, from starters through to desserts. As you flip through these recipes youll find classic favorites

Crispy greens, juicy fruits, tangy beans, or creamy pasta; theres something special about every type of salad. Unlike cooked serving foods, salads are wonderful way of keeping the distinctive flavors from each ingredient used. You could taste all greens from garden salad while every addition in a warm potato salad. It does not matter if you are a skilled chef or a learner on cooking, salads have a way of waking up your taste buds and your creativity.

Fresh salads do offer something exceptional for modern life, they comprise of ingredients one can easily recognize and pronounce. As long as you stick with produce and all natural toppings, you can create anything from an appetizer to an entre without including a single mysterious additive in the meal. Considering the easy preparation and numerous health benefits, its surprising that more people dont eat a salad at least once a day.

Part of the problem is due to a feeling that salads lack variety or imagination, which couldnt be farther from the truth. A pre-packaged tossed salad from the store may be a dull meal to eat every day, but with a little guidance and a few minutes of work, anyone can learn how to take a salad from simple to spectacular. Think of salads as the ultimate culinary exploration and let the ingredients in- spire you. Any ingredient you can consume in raw form can be put into a salad, as well as many foods that require cooking.

All four food groups work in a salad, which means you can go wild at the grocery store. These recipes are 50 perfect opportunities to grab a cheese youve always wanted to try, discover a new dressing to bring out the flavor of carrots, or find a use for the exotic fruits youve seen in the produce aisle.