My Favorite Spice Mix

March 26, 2010

My Favorite Spice Mix

This recipe can easily be modified according to your taste, preference and diet restriction. You can mix up once and have 3-4 uses before having to drag out all the spice jars again.

Salad Dressing/ Vegetable Marinade/ Pasta Salad Spice Mix

Ingredients
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon white sugar~
2 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon celery seeds
1 teaspoon crushed peppers
1-2 teaspoon salt*
¼ – ½ cup vinegar of your choice
¼ – ½ cup oil of your choice
2-4 tablespoon water or lemon juice
~substitute with Splenda or other sugar substitute if you on diabetic diet

*Leave out if you are on sodium (salt) restricted diet 1 teaspoon is about 2,300 mg of sodium!  Remember the more flavor you add from herbs and spices the less you would miss the salt. I like to use sea salt such as Celtic Sea Salt for additional mineral content.

Directions
For a Salad Dressing or a Pasta Salad
Whisk vinegar, oil, and water or lemon juice mixture together then add the spice mix.

Use 1-2 part vinegar to 1-2 part oil (a ratio you prefer), I like mine 1 part vinegar, 1 part oil, 2 part water.
I like unpasteurized apple cider vinegar and extra virgin olive oil you can use less oil by adding more water, or lemon juice
2-3 T of spice mix to your taste, store the rest in air tight container i.e. baby food jar for later use

Uses

  • As a salad dressing
  • A vegetable marinade
  • For a pasta salad 1:1 ratio of pasta to fresh cut up vegetables (tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, celery, carrots, cauliflower or whatever you have in your garden or frig – great way to get a variety of vegetables to your diet.

Of course 1 part pasta to 2 parts cut up veggies would be even better!

Add lean ham, turkey, chicken breast strips or sliced hard boiled eggs for added protein. A mixture of cooked beans would add protein and a good soluble fiber source too.

Nutrition facts

1 tablespoon of most oils contains about 120 calories
2 oz pasta serving (~1 cup cooked) has about 200 calories depends on how it was made.

Example: if you use 2 cups of pasta, 2 cups fresh cut up vegetables, 2 tablespoon of oil in your recipe.  Then 2 cups of pasta salad is about 320+ calories.  The vegetables by themselves do not contain very many calories. Most 1 cup of raw vegetable has 25 calories.

Health notes

  • Cold pressed extra virgin olive oil is best but you can use canola oil, peanut oil. You would want to use the higher monosaturaed fat containing oil for heart health.
  • Unpasteurized apple cider vinegar is believed to have cholesterol lowering, and improve blood sugar effect. Be cautious about using apple cider vinegar as a regular medicinal treatment.  More research is needed for its safety for humans.
  • I did not use whole wheat pasta or this time, but that would have been a healthier option for increase fiber.
  • Low carb Tofu Shirataki noodles would be excellent for this recipe it only has 20 calories per 4 oz serving and a good source of soluble fiber.

Related posts:
Every Day Food Made Healthier
More Every Day Food Made Healthier
Lower The Salt (Sodium) in Your Food
Getting The Most From Your Lemons
Shirataki Tofu Noodles

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