There isn’t always time to cook or meal prep and that’s ok. Sharing a quick and simple Mediterranean Diet Recipe on-the-go idea, using bagged salad.
Quick and Easy Meals
The holiday season is kicking into high gear. For many of us, myself included, that tends to mean extra long to do lists!
From extracurricular activities, holiday gatherings, and parties, schedules can get pretty busy around this time. This is when people tend to have less time (and desire) to spend cooking and rely more on grab and go, convenience foods.
Mediterranean Diet Meals on the Go
Although the Mediterranean Diet tends to lean towards embracing the joy of cooking and preparing meals using the freshest, less processed ingredients – that isn’t always an option.
But you can still follow a Mediterranean inspired diet using store bought, pre-packaged items.
Bagged Salad to the Rescue
A simple and quick way to get some veggies into your meals – bagged salads. Available at almost everywhere groceries are sold, these all in one salad kits are convenient.
The trick is to trying to keep it as healthy as possible is to look for the following –
- dark, leafy greens like spinach, kale, arugula, and romaine instead of iceberg (which has little to no fiber)
- the more veggies included the better (carrots, radishes, radicchio, broccoli, cauliflower)
- olive oil based dressings instead of creamy ranch, blue cheese, etc
- be careful of “extras” like cheese, bacon, bbq sauce that can add additional items like saturated fats, sodium and sugar
A Quick Mediterranean Diet Recipe Idea
I love using bagged salad to bring a meal together. However, I like to jazz it up a bit and add ingredients to make it a bit more Mediterranean.
I started with this Taylor Farms “Mediterranean Crunch” Chopped Salad Kit. This is one of my favorite kits because the salad includes escarole, endive, broccoli, cauliflower, radicchio, carrots and red cabbage. A plethora of veggies. The “extra” items include feta cheese, flatbread strips and a basil balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
To make it a bit more filling and mediterranean, I added the following ingredients –
- Sunflower seeds
- Sliced avocado
- Kalamata Olives
- Dried cranberries and golden raisins
- Fresh basil
I also used this Best Vinaigrette Dressing in place of the balsamic vinaigrette that was included in the bag. Their dressing included some “natural flavors” and gums, so I just went with my own to keep it simple.
Suggestions for Elevating Bagged Salads
You can jazz up bagged salads with almost any ingredients. Some suggestions include –
- Chopped nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans) to add heart healthy fats and bit of protein
- Extra veggies
- Dried fruit
- Fresh fruit (apples, orange slices, berries)
- Sliced Avocado for a little healthy fat
- Seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, chia) for a bit of protein, fiber and heart healthy fats
- Extra protein (especially if you are eating the salad as a meal) – hardboiled egg, diced chicken, canned tuna/salmon, grilled chicken, shrimp, leftover steak or pork, tofu
