Ingredients:
1/4 pound organic Spring greens ($1)
1/4 English cucumber ($.25)
1/2 large avocado ($.60)
2 small tomatoes ($.50)
2-3 baby bells or 1/2 red bell pepper ($.25)
1/4 c. good quality balsamic, salt, pepper ($.10)
Total: $2.70
Sometimes, instead of avocado, I'll put in 1/4 c. garbanzoes, 1/8 c. pistachios or walnuts, 10 cured black olives, or a crumbled veggie patty. I don't put oil on the salad--the fat from the avocado (or its substitutes) is enough, and the salad is already pushing 400+ calories. None of these substitutions changes the price substantially. I buy pretty much everything from Costco. I eat a salad like this about four days a week (in other words, as long as it takes to go through the lettuce. I usually hit Costco twice a month, so I buy two one-pound containers of lettuce each time--if its pack date is fresh enough. You gotta be careful at Costco.)
Great looking salad. I copied it and will try it. Kipsy makes a similar salad. I'm impressed by the picture.
ReplyDeleteYou should be a food stylist. That picture looks great! Unfortunately, I don't have a digital camera so I can't ever share pictures of my food.
ReplyDeleteWow, thanks! The ingredients did all the work, actually--but you've both inspired me to put more effort into my food pics.
ReplyDeleteMomcat, don't shy away from lots of additions like nuts and especially garbanzoes, especially when you are just getting into the habit of salads. Also, get *really* high quality balsamic. Believe it or not, Costco's balsamic is really, really good--despite being quite cheap (about $10 a quart).