Dress Salads for Success, Says Healthy Steps by Jokari

Summer salads don’t have to be a bore. With vegetables at the core, salads can add a big helping of vitamins and minerals, to your summertime menu, says Healthy Steps by Jokari, specialists in portion control kitchen tools.

Remember this fashion rule? After you finish dressing, remove one piece of jewelry or an accessory. The same can be said when adding dressing to a salad. Less is more. Don’t drown the salad’s wonderful flavors with too much dressing.

Good eating is about creating an irresistible combination of the season's freshest veggies and fruits. The secret is to dress lightly with tangy vinaigrettes and light creamy options for the perfect warm-weather supper. Healthy Steps shares these simple ideas to dress salads at their best.

• Go Green. Start by building on a base of the greenest, leafiest ingredients, which are great sources of vitamin C, and also plenty of that “foliage” vitamin – folate. The greens are the base for building a better salad. The calories add up with the dressings and add-ons.  The Healthy Steps Portion Control Dressing Lid provides a stylish solution to freely pouring too much salad dressing and consuming too many empty calories. The dressing lid fits numerous sizes of store-bought salad dressing bottles, working best with a plastic salad dressing bottle. Plus there's no way you can over-fill the chamber with the USDA recommended two tablespoons of dressing.

• Don’t Be Afraid of Color. Spike your salad with your own colorful combinations – tomatoes, carrots, cabbages, spinach and bell peppers. These salad staples pack a punch of vitamin A such as beta carotene. The Healthy Steps Produce Saver bags keep light away from your potatoes and onions preventing them from sprouting. The breathable fabric allows produce to breathe and extends the shelf life of onions, carrots, garlic, mushroom, potatoes and more. Handy drawstring closure provides easy access to vegetables.

• Accessorize. Add a taste blast with a combination of citrus rind, fresh minced garlic, fruit slices or berries, finely crumbled cheeses or nuts. Healthy Steps Nut Bowl & Scoop is the solution to balancing the healthy benefits of nuts with proper portion control. The Nut Bowl is the perfect size for any time snacking, and you'll know exactly how much a one ounce portion is.  Save money and buy nuts in bulk, then measure out your own mixed nut creations. Mix and match your favorite combinations and your taste buds will sit up and take notice.

• Add Eye Appeal. Don’t forget healthy salad add-ons like sliced almonds, dried cherries, cranberries, golden raisins and chow mien noodles. You can also please your palate with, pumpkin seeds, mushrooms, beets, tortilla chip strips and fresh herbs; Healthy Steps Multi-Use Herb Pro is a mincer, stripper, and pair of herb scissors, all in one! Spices and herbs add exciting flavors to foods without adding fat or sacrificing taste. Get away from the traditional butter and salt flavors and spice up your foods the healthy way, with fresh herbs.

• All Dressed Up. Over-dressing is too much of a good thing – dress for success, not extra calories. Healthy Steps Portion Control Dressing Cruet provides three recipes embossed on the bottle, plus a fourth healthy salad dressing option inside. Homemade salad dressings can be much healthier than store-bought dressings, with less calories, saturated fat and sodium. Give your homemade dressing a couple of shakes; squeeze a perfect two tablespoon portion into the top serving chamber. Top your fresh greens and enjoy.

• Simple is Best. Oil and vinegar is the best lower-calorie option, and flavored vinegars perk up and vary the taste. Fresh herbs give your salad a homemade, not store-bought, flavor. Making fresh dressing is as easy as a drizzle of olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar.

Try this vinaigrette recipe from Healthy Steps that’s perfect for summer salads:

Raspberry Chive Vinaigrette
3/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup raspberry vinegar
1/4 cup fresh raspberries
1 teaspoon fresh chives, finely chopped
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Combine all ingredients in jar and shake well.

Healthy Steps kitchen tools are developed on the principle of portion control. Each stylish utensil provides the perfect measure of ingredients for cooking.
Currently, the Healthy Steps by Jokari line has 30 products with MSP ranging from $2.99 to $14.95. The entire line is available online at Organize.com and Amazon. A selection of products is available at many different retailers including Hy-Vee, Garden Ridge, Cost Plus World Market, Schnuck’s, Zabar’s, Chef Central, QFC, Stop & Shop, Giant Food Stores and the Spartan Stores’ family of grocery stores.
For more information, log on to http://www.myhealthysteps.com for products, recipes and nutritional information. Follow Healthy Steps by Jokari on Facebook.com/healthysteps, Twitter at www.twitter.com/healthy_steps and on YouTube at www.YouTube.com/user/MyHealthySteps. 

Media Advisory: For more information on Healthy Steps by Jokari or product samples, contact Jane Jarrell at TrizCom, 214-718-4408 or jane@trizcom.com.

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About: Healthy Steps by Jokari has built a strong reputation since 1974 and is well-known in the industry for creating innovative products for the home and beyond. The company offers a wide range of mostly patented products designed to simplify everyday tasks, create storage solutions and extend the life of common household products such as carbonated beverages and wine.