Chopped Salad with a Tangy Lemon Vinaigrette

 

Just to show that I am not always a glutton and indulging myself on rich and fattening goodies, I like to throw something healthy in here once in a while.

 

Healthy things like this delicious salad which I threw together the other night. I just used up things which I had in my veggie drawer that I thought would go together very well, according to colour and taste . . . and texture as well. That's very important.

 

I created a delicious lemony herbed vinaigrette which went very well with it.   I added just a touch of sugar to the vinaigrette as Todd doesn't like things to be too tart.  The North American in my likes things a bit on the sweet side as well, I confess!!

 

 Okay . . . so the cheese is probably not all that healthy . . . but it did add an especially scrummy touch.   I used two different kinds . . .  a cubed strong cheddar, with a bit of a bite . . . and coarsely grated Parmesan, with a nice salty tang, which went down very well.



All in all it was quite, quite delicious, if I don't say so myself!



*Chopped Salad with a Tangy Lemon Vinaigrette*
Serves 4 to 6, depending on how much you love salad
Printable Recipe

I just kind of threw this together and it turned out really, really good.  Enjoy!

For the dressing:
2 fluid ounces of olive oil (1/4 cup)
2 fluid ounces of fresh lemon juice (1/4 cup)
1 TBS Worcestershire Sauce
2 tsp sugar (or more if you find it really tart)
3 to 4 dashes hot pepper sauce
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp mixed herbs

For the Salad:
1 small tin of sweet corn, drained (I like the salad crisp)
1/2 each, red, green and yellow pepper, chopped
1 head of romaine lettuce cut into 1 inch pieces crosswise
1 small punnet of cherry tomatoes, halved
(I used a combination of baby plum, and red and yellow cherry tomatoes)
4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, cubed
2 ounces parmesan cheese coarsely grated on a box grater

Toss all of your salad ingredients together in a bowl.  Place all of the dressing ingredients into a glass jar and give them a good shake.  Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.  You may or may not want more sugar.  It all depends on how tart the lemon is.  You may want to leave the sugar out all together.  I put it in because Todd doesn't like things too tart.  Drizzle half of the dressing over the salad and toss.  Pass the rest at the table.

Note:  Croutons are very nice on this as well.  You may also add some chopped crisply cooked bacon for a nice touch.  Thawed frozen peas are also a very nice addition for extra colour.

PSSSTTTT!!!  My sister has started a new blog . . . Flat Belly Files . . . she has a delicious recipe posted there today for a scrummy salad, and a host of information for those who are health conscious and into fitness!  She's a brilliant writer, so hop on over and give it a boo!