Caroline Kaufman, MS, RDN

Eat Better, Stress Less

Canning Jar Salads

by

I’ve got salad-in-a-jar fever – and the only cure is MORE canning jars.

Are you looking for an easy, stress-free way to eat more fruits and vegetables during the week? Do you want to find fun ways to get your kids to eat their greens? Do you have a little extra time on the weekend you can carve out for food prep? Then read on.

If you store salads in a canning jar, you can eat them all week long. Yes, even on the last day of the week, your salad will taste as fresh as day one. It’s truly amazing. The secret is in the stacking. Stack your salad right, and it will stay fresh and crisp. Oh, and they’re beautiful. Bonus.

How to Stack Your Canning Jar Salad:
 
  1. Prep the vegetables and keep them separate.
  2. Pour your favorite dressing into the jar first.
  3. Add protein or a hearty vegetable like quinoa, faro, chickpeas, cooked chicken, cauliflower or broccoli.
  4. Add chopped vegetables.
  5. Add greens like spinach, iceberg, arugula, kale, etc.
  6. Top with treats like chopped apples, a little cheese, a sprinkling of walnuts, or even edible flowers.
  7. Close the jar and put it in the fridge.
On your way out the door that week, grab: your jar, a bowl, a fork, and a napkin. At lunchtime, shake your jar to mix the dressing and pour it into the bowl.

For families – If you have kids, let them help you prep (if they’re old enough), and layer the ingredients. At dinner time, give everyone their own closed jar. Let each member of the family shake up their own salad and pour it out.

Salad Recipe Inspiration:
(from the bottom up)

 

Spinach-Apple-Fennel:
  • balsamic vinaigrette
  • rainbow quinoa
  • thinly sliced fennel
  • spinach leaves
  • chopped Gala apples that have been sprayed with lemon juice
  • chopped Gruyere cheese
Strawberry-Feta-Pasta:
  • sherry vinaigrette
  • whole wheat rotini
  • chopped red peppers
  • rough chopped spinach leaves
  • sliced strawberries
  • crumbled feta cheese
Fig-Almond-Couscous:
  • balsamic vinaigrette with a touch of honey
  • whole grain couscous
  • chopped cucumber
  • arugula
  • chopped figs
  • chopped almonds

You could add tofu, chicken, tempeh, or roast turkey to these salads too. Use my ideas as a starting point for your own favorite combinations!

Dressing Recipes (if you have time):
 
You’ll need olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, shallots, and salt and black pepper.
-There are endless variations on this dressing – add honey, use different vinegars like sherry or apple cider vinegar, throw in some chopped tomatoes, etc.

More recipes from Bittman and the New York Times here.

I’m also playing with the small canning jars – like this pint size. I stuck celery sticks in peanut butter and I’m calling it a celery forest. It’s a great snack for work!

 

I’ve been loving the Ball wide-mouth pint and a half jars for salad (makes filling and pouring easier) and the half-pints for snacks and sides.

Do you like canning jars? What are you going to make?

Can’t wait to hear!

Caroline

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Comments

    • Sweet Foodie says

      Thanks Brittany! If you don’t mind chopping, there’s something almost meditative about the salad prep. It reminds me of when I was little and would turn on music and color in my coloring books. Same kind of mindless, organized activity. (btw – there’s a phone app called Songza. You tell it what you’re doing and it gives you a playlist for the activity – fun for Sunday food prep)

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