As little kids, our parents treated us to dinner on Saturdays if we behaved throughout the week. If the adults craved something other than Little Caesars or McDonalds, we all drove downtown to the Pub, where they served beer-battered fries, spicy hot links, and juicy chicken sandwiches. Of course, my brother and I always ordered plain hamburgers with ketchup or ooey-gooey grilled cheeses off of the kid’s menu instead! Â
One weekend, our parents turned down a different street and parked in front of an Italian restaurant. Completely culture-shocked, we stumbled up the steps, just to learn that they offered fettuccine alfredo, spinach ravioli, and garlic bread, but no hamburgers or grilled cheese. They didn’t even have a kid’s menu to color on!
I wasn’t ready to be a big girl just yet, but I had no choice. After staring at the grown-up menu, I finally selected the Caesar salad, only because it shared a name with my favorite pizza place! When the waitress set it in front of me, I stabbed a single piece of lettuce and slowly chewed.
And I then proceeded to (politely) shovel my entire salad into my mouth before either of my parents got through half of their pasta plates. That dressing was good!
I no longer have the energy to run around all day like my 8-year-old self, so I can’t quite afford to slather all of my salads in Caesar dressing anymore. But this lightened creamy Dijon dressing does make for a tasty alternative!
The different textures and flavors in this salad make it irresistible!
- To prepare the dressing, stir all of the ingredients together in a small bowl, and chill for at least 30 minutes before using.
- In a large bowl, toss together the lettuce and salad dressing until the leaves are evenly coated.
- Slice the hardboiled egg whites into thin strips. Slice the tomato in half, and slice each half into 8 wedges.
- Add three-fourths of the egg whites and three-fourths of the carrots to the dressed lettuce, and toss to combine. Divide between two plates, and top each with half of the tomato wedges and remaining carrots and eggs.
I love reading your posts and I am particularly inspired by your photos! I would love for you to show us how you take such delicious looking pictures so I can get better at my own! Thanks and keep up the awesome work!
Aww thank you, that’s really sweet of you!! I’m trying to put together the mini-series now, and it’s been fun to look back at my own food photography progress. I learned pretty quickly to turn off the flash! ;]
i love creamy dijon dressing.. it’s a good way to have some dressing without too much fat. 🙂
Exactly! It’s crazy how much fat can sneak into a salad through the dressing alone, so I enjoy making my own instead!
Smart way to get a kid hooked on eating salads- Creamy dressings are irresistible! Glad you came up with a healthier version too.
It’s so true! When you mask all of the healthy flavors of lettuce, spinach, and kale, anybody will eat them — even picky kids like me!
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