One of my most favoritist foods is a great salad. I mean whats not to like? I love the colors, different textures, the dressing, yum! When I was going through my tummy issues, I would default to a salad, not even knowing it was one of the worst things I could put in my body. One of my staple breakfasts was an over easy egg over sautéed kale and onions with a side of turkey bacon! Yes KALE for breakfast - you should try it :)
Anyway, when I made the discovery that I could not eat leafy greens and the majority of green veggies, my life was literally turned upside down. I went about six months without eating a salad and lots of veggies. This past Christmas, we were in Atlanta visiting my husband's parents and his mother had made side salads to go with a delicious dinner of ribs. As I was sitting there being jealous of their salads I had an "A-HA!" moment. I then made my first ever UNSALAD (thanks to my MIL for the name :) ) I used all the toppings (that I could eat) and made a salad, many colors, textures, and dresssinngg! Oh so stinkin good. Back in Charlotte at Christmas, we went to
Common Market for lunch with my brother, Davis, and his girlfriend, Christina. I ordered my first ever unsalad in public. The guy looked at me pretty funny - It went something like this: "I'd like the cobb salad with no lettuce please", "uh...okay?" The great thing though, is he asked me if I wanted anything extra...and I got extra avocado for free! I learned that I need to feed my body what it needs and not worry about what other people are thinking about me. They don't know my body, I do. Plus, most people simply don't care.
Lastly, as I was talking to Christina about my conundrum she offered this idea: julienned zucchini as the lettuce bed! Brilliant! SO without further ado...I present my UNsalad.
It was 70 degrees and sunny yesterday - The hubs and I went for a run then launched into food prep for the week. All it takes is an hour in the kitchen for a week of healthy eats!
The UNsalad: (Makes 5 salads - Food prep for the week!)
Ingredients:
- 2 zucchinis
- 1 package of carrots
- 1 package baby bella mushrooms
- 1 package cherry tomatoes
- 1 can black olives
- 1 sweet red onion
- 1 beet/salad (Trader Joe's makes peeled and cooked beets - find in produce aisle)
- Goat cheese or feta cheese
- Hard-boiled eggs
- Dressing: a touch of EVOO, lots of balsamic, pepper, and basil
How to:
 |
| First, peel the zucchini, throw the peels away. Next use a mandolin or an veggie peeler and start peeling thin layers of zucchini. Divide among five containers. These will be part of your "lettuce" base. |
 |
Next, peel your carrots. Use veggie peeler to peel thin layers of carrots.
These will be part of your "lettuce" base. |
 |
| Add the rest of your toppings and store!The morning of, peel your egg, cut into fourths and add to your UNsalad! |
A few side notes:
- No, you do not HAVE to peel the zucchini. I do because my body doesn't handle insoluble fiber properly (i.e the skin of a zucchini) which means I cannot break the skin down. If I eat the skin, I suffer severe stomach pain including bloating and swelling. If you can eat the skin, use it!
- Don't like mushrooms? Me neither! I'm trying - really, really trying! Read up on the benefits and maybe you can begin to acquire the taste for them!
And a few pics of the cutest pup ever made doing a dance for some carrot peels! Isn't she just the cutest??
