Although summer is coming to an end, barbeques are just reaching their peak as Labor Day beckons on the horizon. The big question on many minds becomes “what dish should I bring?”!  It goes without saying that our waistlines suffer in the wake of summer events.  However, you don’t always have to sacrifice your pant size for taste (or vise-versa).

One of my go-to dishes is this Broccoli Salad.  I love that it is fairly inexpensive and easy to make, looks great in a bowl (this is very important), and is gobbled up time and time again leaving no leftovers for me to deal with.  BONUS: It is quite nutritious.

Ingredients –

• 2 heads of broccoli
• 1/4 cup thinly chopped red onion
• 1/4 cup craisins
• 1/2 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• 4 ounces of 2% sharp cheddar, cubed or grated
• 1/4 cup silvered almonds, toasted
• 4 slices of bacon, crumbled
• 1/3 cup light mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• Freshly ground black pepper

Wash all produce.  Using only the flowerets, chop broccoli into bite size pieces and place into large mixing bowl.  Add onion, craisins, tomatoes, cheddar, bacon, and almonds.  To prepare dressing mix mayonnaise, vinegar and pepper together in small bowl.  Gently toss salad in dressing to coat.  Let sit overnight in fridge.  Enjoy!

Nutritional Information (per 1/2 cup serving): 104 calories, 6.5 g fat, 6.5 g carbohydrates, 1.5 g fiber, 5 g protein, 193 mg sodium.

* Recipe re-published with author’s permission.  To view original recipe and article, please visit Chew With Your Mouth Open, January 23, 2011.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 22nd, 2011 at 5:39 pm and is filed under Health, Health & Living. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.