Whoops, typo I meant Pairs.
It’s Hot time, summer in the city which means lots of salads, vegetables and fruits are fresh and yummy. Perhaps you also want to eat more vegetables to lose that bikini weight. Then, these pairs are for you.
Learn to think like a vegetarian. People often ask me, “If you don’t eat meat, what do you eat?” Then they look at me and realize I don’t miss too many meals. You may have decided to leave meat out of a meal or two, or all. Since you cannot replace something with nothing here are seven pairings that you can incorporate into your summer menus for variety, flavor and nutrition.
Think outside of the butcher box.
Lime and Salad
Limes are high in vitamin C and a mild anti-inflammatory. They help freshen flavors and can replace salt. Squeeze a lime wedge over a fresh lettuce salad and it will pop. You won’t need as much dressing, saving calories
Cantaloupe and Avocado
This is a powerful pair. High in vitamins A and C and mildly anti-inflammatory. Avocado has lots of good fat.
Slice the melon into cubes and serve with slices of avocado. Ration 3 parts melon to 1 part avocado. The creamy avocado complements the cool moist melon. This makes a great breakfast, snack or dessert
Tomato and watermelon
You likely know both these fruits are good for you. They’re full of vitamins, moisture and fiber. Both are ripe at the same time of year. Buy them fresh, from a Farm stand if possible. Luscious juicy tomatoes are a delight with luscious juicy watermelon. Cube both and serve in equal amounts. So cool and refreshing, a great salad or appetizer.
Tomato and mozzarella
AKA Caprese. Fresh slices of red ripe tomatoes, alternated with thin slices of fresh mozzarella. Salt lightly, sprinkle with olive oil and strips of fresh basil. Not exactly low in calories, but the olive oil is a good fat (MUFA) and fresh mozzarella is a healthy cheese.
You must use fresh mozzarella, the kind wrapped in a ball or floating in water. Lower in salts and fats. Not the pizza topping stuff grated or sliced in baggies. Fresh mozzarella is creamy and has mild flavor.
Eat this as a salad or put onto a pizza crust and bake. Then it becomes margherita pizza. Or toast bread in olive oil, lay a couple slices of fresh mozzarella on top, cover with tomato slices and shred fresh basil over the top. This is my go-to lunch this week.
Eggs and Olives
These two round beauties will kick up main dish salads. I use them for flavor and texture, not nutrition. Although eggs do provide some protein.
Use the eggs hard-boiled. I finally have found a fool-proof way to cook them. More than once on a summer day I put eggs on the stove to boil then went outside for a while. Time passed and I got engrossed in gardening or talking to neighbors or splashing in the pool. Later as I came inside there was a terrible sulphur smell, the pan had boiled dry and the kitchen was full of exploded eggs. (Can you relate?)
Here’s how I boil them now. I place 2-4 eggs in a sauce pan, cover with water and put on to boil. I stay in the kitchen until they are boiling well. Turn off the heat, Put a lid onto the pan and set the timer to 10 minutes. If you actually hear the timer when it dings, drain the eggs under cold running water until eggs are cool then put into refrigerator to cool them fully. The worse that can happen if you forget about the eggs and run to the store or take a walk, will be the eggs are overcooked, but not exploded.
Olives. For salad additions I prefer the green ones to the black. They provide more of a bite and salt to the salad.
Chopped up, both eggs and olives can be added to any main dish salad. They add flavor to potato salads, tuna macaroni salad, pasta salads.
Peas and mushrooms
I once read that together these create a complete protein. Not sure if that is accurate, but they do pair well. Together they enhance warm and cold dishes.
I am talking about the actual peas, You can use snap pea or snow peas but a bag of frozen peas is a must have for anyone who wants to eat more vegetables. Inexpensive, they wait for you until you want them.
Thaw the peas and drain; add to lettuce or other cold salads.
Same with raw mushrooms. Do not rinse mushrooms, this will make them rubbery. To clean, wipe them with a slightly damp paper towel. Use the inexpensive, easy to find white button mushrooms from super markets.
Sautee mushrooms to add them to hot dishes, especially rice. Peas don’t really need to cook, just toss them into the hot dish at the end of cooking time. Try them in pasta dishes or together as a side dish
Beans and cheese
Here is a good way to add protein, fiber and dairy to your vegetarian diet. You probably already love the taste of a yummy a bean burrito with cheese.
Garbanzo beans, kidney beans, cannellini beans, red beans, white beans, black beans, whichever you prefer. Per cup canned beans have 215 to 300 calories, about 50% of daily fiber and 12 to 19 grams of protein. And they are inexpensive, flavorful and filling.
Serve beans out of the can and drained. Toss beans into any vegetable salad. They will add texture, flavor and nutrition. Sprinkle some grated cheese over the salad and serve. Break up tortilla chips over the top for added texture. Or, let the kids use the chips as a tool instead of a fork.
You can serve this as a main dish for lunch or a side dish with supper.
