As registered dietitians, personal trainers, and veggie lovers, people automatically assume we live on salads. Umm, NO! Although we love a good salad, we certainly don’t live on them! In fact, we tend to eat a lot more of veggies that we’ve mixed right into our meals (like in our Veggie Frittata Bites, Veggie & Quinoa Stir-fry and our Turkey Fiesta Stir-fry then in the “salad” form. Plus we’re fans of a wide variety of foods, and include them in our diet—everything from all different types of produce, to whole grains, organic dairy foods, seafood, chicken, beans, nuts… and chocolate, just to name a few. 😉
That being said, we always encourage our clients to fill up on vegetables like salads before a meal (and we too do this whenever we can!). When you do this before heading out to dinner, it’s easier to avoid attacking the basket of bread, oh yeah! 🙂 . This is a great weight loss secret. Eating a salad or veggies before having your meal takes an edge of hunger and can greatly reduce calorie intake of your meal. Although the salad or veggies adds a few calories, you’ll typically end up eating significantly less of your main meal and saving many more calories than your veggie appetizer adds! Try filling up on a salad or veggies before your meal and see!
Tomato, Cucumber, Avocado, & Chickpea Salad
This salad is sure to fill you up but is light enough to do it without leaving you feeling bloated; it’s perfect for an appetizer or as a side dish. Super easy to throw together, with tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, and chickpeas, your tummy will be thanking you!
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
1 cup sliced grape tomatoes
1 large cucumber
1/2 avocado
¾ cup chickpeas
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp rice vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Slice the grape tomatoes in half, dice the cucumber and avocado, and add to a bowl along with the chickpeas.
2. Add the olive oil, rice vinegar, and salt and pepper.
3. Mix together then enjoy!
Nutrition Facts per Serving
Calories: 128
Carbohydrates: 13.5 g
Fat: 8 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 0 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Protein: 3 g
Sodium: 49 mg
Sugar: 2.5 g
Potassium: 250 mg
Fiber: 5 g
- 1 cup sliced grape tomatoes
- 1 large cucumber
- ½ avocado
- ¾ cup chickpeas
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Slice the grape tomatoes in half, dice the cucumber and avocado, and add to a bowl along with the chickpeas.
- Add the olive oil, rice vinegar, and salt and pepper.
- Mix together then enjoy!