Athletic-Minded Traveler

Wow! That was our reaction when we tried out the Caesar Parmigiano Yogurt salad dressing from Bolthouse Farms. We are salad connoisseurs and sampling dressings is a team hobby. But we refuse to stock our fridge with any calorie, salt or sugar bombs. The result is that many dressings under perform in our rigorous taste tests.

In fact, it has been years since we’ve made room for a new member in our very tight-knit salad dressing family. Congratulations to Bolthouse Farms and its Caesar Parmigiano Yogurt based dressing. And don’t worry if you’re not a big Caesar fan, because this dressing isn't typically "Caesar".  We'd characterize it as bold with a distinct Asiago/Parmesan punch.

But let’s step back.  Dressings must pass our nutrition criteria before we will even try them, meaning calories under 70 for a 2T serving, no sugar load and moderate salt. The sodium is higher than we’d like at 170mg (7%), but we typically find 1 tablespoon along with one of our other favorite dressings is plenty. It has that much flavor. It’s thick and a little goes a long ways (sort of like a sprinkle of bacon bits). In fact, we prefer it with other dressings or thinned out with lemon juice. It’s strong!

Need help with your salad dressing inventory? Look no further than our past post “The Healthy Salad Dressing Hall of Fame.” If you enjoy salads, do NOT miss this! We also provide instruction about creating the perfect salad.

As an aside, as we were searching for other’s opinions on this dressing, and stumbled upon this recipe for “Tuna Cakes,” or as creator Sara Sosa calls them, “The Poor Girl’s Crab Cakes”.  It looks to be super easy and given the bold flavor of this dressing, it could pair very well with tuna (tuna salad too!). * Note the recipe was listed on the website justapinch.com

Let us know if you try them!

"Poor Girl's Crab Cakes"  

Ingredients: 2 Servings

• 2 can tuna (drained)
• 1/2 c liquid egg
• 2 Tbsp breadcrumbs
• 2 Tbsp bolthouse farms caesar parmigiano (or mayo)
• salt & pepper to season
• oil for cooking

Our notes: They are a little dry & somewhat bland. BUT, add 1/4 cut diced onion and then top with your favorite "sauce", for example one of our favorite dressings, hummus or a gourmet mustard...anything!

Directions:

1. Mix tuna, liquid egg, breadcrumbs, caesar parmigiano, and salt & pepper.
2. Form 2 cakes.
3. Cook each side in pan with oil over medium heat until golden brown -- about 4 min/side.

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