Lime-Cilantro Vinaigrette

I know it's the middle of January, but we just had a few rogue, hot 'summer' days, so for dinner I made a fresh healthy salad to battle the heat. However, this recipe can also be appropriate for January because it follows the new year mindset of being 'healthy, wealthy, and wise'... I will show you how inexpensive, nutritious, and delicious this SUPER EASY lime-cilantro vinaigrette is over a simple southwestern salad.


Dressing Ingredients:
1 cup of packed fresh cilantro
1/4 cup lime juice (I used 3 whole, hand squeezed limes)
1/4 cup orange juice (I used 1/2 large, hand squeezed orange)
1 clove of minced garlic (again, I used my handy dandy garlic 'zoom' toy -seen in previous post)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Simply pack all the ingredients at once into your food processor (or blender)...

...Let it spin for about 10 seconds or so...

...and you have a beautifully colorful, DELICIOUS, and flavorful vinaigrette made from fresh ingredients:

Now pour it over your salad of choice. I think this dressing goes great over a fresh southwestern salad.

 Of course, you can add or subtract any ingredients to your liking, but this is how I like to create my southwestern salad (I like to add lots of color; Typically, more color means more nutrients): 

Colorful Nutritious Salad:

-2 heads iceberg lettuce, chopped (I've tried it with Romaine lettuce before, but I found that the Romaine didn't quite compliment the tex-mex flavors in this salad)

-1 large tomato, diced (good source of Vitamins A & C, and Lycopene -a cancer fighting antioxidant)

-1 avocado, peeled and diced (high in GOOD monounsturated fats)

-1 red bell pepper, diced (high in Vitamin C)

-1 can black beans, drained (high in Protein and Fiber)

-1 can corn, drained (Whole Grain, and a good source of Fiber and Protein)

-1 handful of cilantro, chopped (helps remove trace heavy metals, and fights infections)

Salads are so easy to tailor to your own preferences. For example, I usually like to add either grilled chicken or ground turkey with taco seasonings to this salad, but if you are a vegetarian this can be a great vegetarian-friendly dish without the meat because it is already full of protein from the black beans and corn- and if you wish to add more protein you can even add in some kidney beans, or some cheese too!

And it's a money-saving meal too:

Salad:

2 heads Iceberg Lettuce	$1.98
1 large Tomato	$0.50
1 Avocado	$0.88
1 Red Bell Pepper	$1.00
1 can Black Beans	$0.59
1 can Corn	$0.44
handful Cilantro (1/2 bundle)	$0.50

Dressing:

Cilantro (1/2 bundle)	$0.50
¼ cup Lime Juice (3 limes)	$0.99
¼ cup OJ (1/2 Orange from Grandma Joanie’s yard)	$0.00
½ tsp Salt	$0.01
½ tsp Pepper	$0.01
1 clove Garlic	$0.05
½ cup EVOO	$0.71

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Grand Total

$8.16

or 6 very generous servings of salad with dressing, which weigh in at  just $1.36 per serving