What is the difference between a boring pile of lettuce and a tasty meal? The toppings, salad toppings can make a salad and turn it from blah diet food to a great, tasty meal
Salad topping #1.Nuts are some of the most popular salad toppings, from almonds to walnuts they are a great source of protein and energy. The nut you choose to add to your salad will depend on the flavor profile you are looking for. If you are looking for a more exotic flavor try macadamia or crushed brazilian nuts. A more traditional taste will come from walnuts, almonds even toasted sunflower seeds.
Salad topping #2. Fruit, this is a great way to add additional flavor and texture to a salad. Different fruits will add different flavor profiles to your salad. Orange slices will give a much different flavor then strawberries or apple slices. Don’t be afraid of dried fruit; dried cranberries, raisins even dried apricots and banana chips can give great flavor to a salad and turn it into a treat.
Salad topping #3. Cheese straws sprinkled on a salad are awesome. The cheese flavor with the salty crunch can take your salad to a new level. Of course if you have cheese straws on the salad it probably does not need grated or cubed cheese.
Salad topping #4. Crunchy salad toppings should never be forgotten. Sesame sticks, crunchy onions and crunchy noodles are just a few of the great crunchy, salty toppings available for your salad. If you are making a salad to eat later it is best to place your crunchy toppings to the side, the moisture from the salad can turn crunchy toppings soggy.
Salad topping #5. Beans are a great source of protein and taste. If you are looking for extra protein in your salad but don’t want to use meat then pull out a can of beans or purchase a small container of prepped beans from the quick food section of your local grocery and pop a couple spoonfuls on your greens. Some beans to try are black beans, white beans or a few chick peas.
Salad topping #6. Meat , yes meat can be a salad topping, just a little salmon or grilled chicken sprinkled on top of your salad will give it additional flavor and texture with out necessarily loading the salad or you with calories.
Salad topping #7. Croutons are a great traditional salad topping. The dried bread cubes come in many flavors from Italian to garlic and butter. Croutons not only add additional flavor but also some crunchiness to the salad. To keep croutons crunchy they should not be added until you are ready to serve the salad, otherwise the dried bread will soak up the moisture from the greens and become spongy bread, edible but not nearly as tasty.
There are many foods that can be used as toppings to add flavor and more to your salads. Just take a walk through your local grocer, farmers market or health food store and see what speaks to our taste buds.
