Japanese Ginger Salad Dressing

This may sound lame, but my favorite part of going out for hibachi is the salad! The homemade ginger salad dressing is delicious and refreshing! I am a slow eater and always feel rushed with hibachi. I've experimented several times to make this dressing and finally found "the one"! It needs to set for a few hours so I find it best to make it on a work morning so that way, when I get home from work all I have to do is prepare the salad.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup of minced onion
3/4 cup of peanut oil
1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar
3 tablespoons of water
3 tablespoons of fresh minced ginger root
3 tablespoons of minced celery
3 tablespoons of ketchup
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of white sugar
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of minced garlic
1 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of fresh black pepper

Directions:

Ready for this? Take all of the above ingredients, plop them in the blender on high for 30 seconds or until it is at a smooth texture. Place it in a container and place it in the refrigerator. Let it sit for at least 3 hours. Make sure to shake well before serving. Drizzle over a salad. I served mine with my Asian Rice Noddle Soup and it made for a great dinner!

*Side note - you should eat this within 3 days or so of making it. It does not have any preservatives in it so it will go bad quicker than store bought salad dressing.

Coconut Shrimp Caesar Salad

Yum yum yum! My boyfriend said this dish was in his "top 5" of the meals I've made him. This is the same Coconut Shrimp that I use in my Coconut Shrimp Over Mango Salsa With Zesty Orange Dressing. 

Ingredients:

1 lb of shrimp cocktail

1/2 cup of all purpose flour

a teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

2/3 cup of water

2 cups of shredded sweetened coconut

1/2 cup of plain breadcrumbs
2 heads of hearts of romaine lettuce
4 Tablespoons of shaved Parmesan cheese
8 tablespoons of Caesar salad dressing

Directions:

Heat up your deep fryer to 325 degrees. Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and water. Let this sit for 15 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the shredded coconut and bread crumbs and mix together. Butterfly your shrimp and form an assembly line of shrimp, batter, the coconut and break crumb mix, then your deep fryer.

Take 1 piece of shrimp and dip it in the batter, coat in the coconut and breadcrumb mix and then slowly drop it into the deep fryer. These should cook for about 2 minutes in the deep fryer or until they are golden brown. Lay out a paper towel on a plate and place the cooked shrimp on there for about 2 minutes after cooking to allow them to dry out a little bit. While the shrimp is cooling, wash and cut the romaine lettuce. On 4 large plates, top with the lettuce and 1 tablespoon of cheese on each plate. Top each plate with equal amounts shrimp and drizzle 2 tablespoons of the Caesar dressing on top. Serve!

Coconut Shrimp over Mango Salsa with Zesty Orange Dressing

So tonight I was in the mood for coconut shrimp since I just bought my new deep fryer.I know frying things isn't the healthiest but mixed with healthy ingredients, it's not so bad!  Here is a little twist on the idea inspired by Bobby Dean.

Mango Salsa:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of diced mango

1/4 cup of chopped green onion

1/4 cup chopped purple onion 

1/2 of a limes juices

1/2 of a lemons juices

Directions:

Chop up all of the ingredients as specified. Mix together with the juices of the lemon and lime. Let this sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. 

Zesty Orange Dipping Sauce:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of orange marmalade

2 teaspoons of rice vinegar

1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:

Add the marmalade, rice vinegar and red pepper flakes in a small sized pot. Cook on low for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. If you want to serve this chilled, allow it to sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.

Coconut Shrimp:

Ingredients:

1 lb of shrimp cocktail

1/2 cup of all purpose flour

a teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

2/3 cup of water

2 cups of shredded sweetened coconut

1/2 cup of plain breadcrumbs

Directions:

Heat up your deep fryer to 325 degrees. Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and water. Let this sit for 15 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the shredded coconut and bread crumbs and mix together. Butterfly your shrimp and form an assembly line of shrimp, batter, the coconut and break crumb mix, then your deep fryer. Take 1 piece of shrimp and dip it in the batter, coat in the coconut and breadcrumb mix and then slowly drop it into the deep fryer. These should cook for about 2 minutes in the deep fryer or until they are golden brown. Lay out a paper towel on a plate and place the cooked shrimp on there for about 2 minutes after cooking to allow them to dry out a little bit.

Serving:

I placed arugula on top of the plate, topped with the Mango Salsa , put the Zesty Orange Dressing in a ramekin and topped with the Coconut Shrimp. it was definitely a big hit!

Not Your Average Wedge Salad

I just love a nice wedge salad! It so refreshing and satisfying!

Ingredients:

1/4 of an iceberg lettuce
1/4 cup of diced tomatoes
1/8 cup of diced purple onion
1 slice of turkey bacon
2 tablespoons of fat free or light blue cheese dressing

Directions:

Cook the turkey bacon as directed on the package. Wash the ice berg lettuce and cut into quarters. Place 1 quarter on a plate. Chop up the tomato and onion. When the turkey bacon is finished cooking, crumble into pieces. Drizzle the blue cheese dressing on the ice berg wedge. Sprinkle and top with the bacon, tomato and onion. Serve with your choice of wine ;)

Nutrition Information - (This recipe makes 1 serving)

Calories - 127

Carbs - 12

Fat - 5

Protein - 10

Sodium - 143

Fiber - 1

Summer Shrimp Salad - 286 Calories

This recipe is great for summer! It cool, refreshing and chilling! I love how easy it is to make, just chop and mix! It leaves more time for laying by the pool and getting together with old friends! This would be perfect for a backyard cook out, because let’s be honest, who wants to slave over an oven all day? Not me!

Ingredients:

-          Shrimp Cocktail (18 Medium Shrimp)

-         ¼ of a white Vidalia onion

-         ¼ cup of garbanzo beans rinsed

-        1.5 oz of light Italian salad dressing

-        ¼ of a medium avocado cubed

-        8 cherry tomatoes

-        Sprinkle of cracked pepper and sea salt

Directions:

Chop up the shrimp cocktail and onion. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Rinse the garbanzo beans. Mix together the cut up shrimp, onion, tomatoes, beans. Add in the salad dressing and sprinkle the cracked pepper and sea salt. Mix well and serve! So easy! Now go enjoy your Summer Shrimp Salad out by the pool!

Nutrition Information (This recipe only makes 1 serving. If you want to make more, just modify the recipe!)

Calories – 286

Carbs – 17

Fat – 4

Protein – 5

Sodium – 160

Fiber - 4

Taco Chicken Salad - 227 Calories!

I am finally back! Since graduating I haven't been able to find the time to update my blog, but I have been doing a lot of cooking so there are lots of recipes to be added! I made this meal as a post workout meal and it was delicious!

Ingredients:

- 3/4 cup of chopped fresh tomatoes
- 1/4 cup of canned corn (rinsed)
- 1/4 cup of black beans (rinsed)
- 1/2 cup of shredded lettuce
- 3 slices of avocado
- 2 teaspoons of low sodium taco seasoning
- 2 tablespoons of light mayonnaise
- (2) 4oz chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup of fat free shredded cheese for topping

Directions:

Cook up the chicken and chop up into bite sized pieces. In a small mixing bowl, mix the mayonnaise and taco seasoning until smooth. In a larger mixing bowl, add the chicken, tomatoes, corn, beans and mayonnaise mixture and mix well. ***If you are making this and will be eating it right away, add the lettuce and avocado and sprinkle the cheese on top. ***If you are making this for the future, hold off on adding the lettuce avocado and cheese and don't add until you are ready to eat it.

Nutrition Facts - (This makes 2 servings. Nutrition information is for 1/2 of the recipe - 1 serving)

Calories - 227
Carbs - 11
Fat - 9
Protein - 27
Sodium - 579
Fiber - 4

Caprese Salad

As simple as it is, there are probably over 100 different ways to make and present a caprese salad. I figured I'd make a blog post for one of my never forgotten favorite Low Calorie Italian foods. Made as a lower calorie version with all natural ingredients, you can't go wrong!


Ingredients

- 8 Cherry tomatoes
- 1 oz fresh mozzarella cheese
- 1 basil leaf
- 1 tablespoon of balsamic dressing (I used Newman's Own Light Roasted Garlic Balsamic)

Directions

Slice up the tomatoes into quarters. Dice up the mozzarella into even small cubes. Shred the basil leaf into small pieces. Add the 1 tablespoon of dressing. Mix all of the ingredients together and serve! What an easy lunch!

Nutrition Facts (For 1 serving - This recipe makes 1 serving)

Calories - 160
Carbs - 8
Fat - 7
Protein - 6
Sodium - 255
Fiber - 2