Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Barbecue Season -- The Good and Bad

It occurred to me that barbecue season has its own challenges.

During the winter months we tend to have all those heavy meals of roasted vege's, mashed potatoes and meat with gravy, and to round it all off we add buns or Yorkshire pudding to the mix if a roast of beef is the main entree for the night.

With barbecue season comes condiments galore and all those wonderful salads. And I'm not talking the simple lettuce and raw vege kind that can be topped with a smidgen of oil and vinegar dressing that our bodies can usually handle. I'm talking the gourmet salads made with loads of mayonnaise and pickled vege's (usually loaded with salt) and even ones mixed with sweet jello. You name it, these days the sky is the limit when it comes to creating scrumptious salads. And just because they fall in the "SALAD" category we are tempted to think they are our "Healthy" choice to fill up on. But beware--in today's world of these tasty creations, that is often not the case. That naked (yes, it's okay to forgo the bun every once in a while)juicy hamburger may actually be the wiser choice to take seconds of rather than heaping your plate full of the so called "SALADS".

If you really study those salads, many probably belong in the empty calorie category or even the dessert one. So be selective. If the salad is sweetened, creamy, full of bacon bits or Mr. Noodle, then it's something that should be regarded with caution. Sure, take a sampling and enjoy every morsel, but load up on the traditional greens with a dab of light dressing as your main vege intake for the meal.

I can smell the grill burning all ready, but wait, didn't I just pop a roast of beef into my crock pot earlier this morning. Guess I'm dreaming. I'll save the grilling for another day when rain isn't in the works.

Happy salad making everyone!

Blessings,

Eileen

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