Deliciously clean and refreshing while filling and low-cal

Let’s be honest – loose fitting sweaters, balloon tops and baggy pants are great to hide the winter weight. But, no one looks super sassy sporting these looks on a warm spring day, much less in a muumuu at the beach. Tick tock, people – It’s already April. It’ll be bikini weather before you know it!

So with summer and thus, swimsuit season, looming – it’s time to shed the January jowl, February fat and even the March mushiness.

Today I sought to create the perfectly filling chop chop salad – no lettuce included. I don’t love the lettuce.

Chop Chop! No Lettuce Salad (serves 4 as a side or 2+ as a meal)

Ingredients:

• 1 english cucumber
• 1 orange bell pepper -or yellow, or if you had to, red
• 1/2 cup of shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup diced gruyere cheese
• 2 tbsp sunflower seeds – no salt
• 1 piece prosciutto
• Ray’s Low-Fat Italian salad dressing
• Salt & Pepper

1. Peel about half of the cucumber – the skin of an english cucumber or hothouse cucumber is AOK to eat – but take a bit off anyway like this

Just a simple peel

2. Dice the cucumber into small squares. i made 1/4 inch rounds and then cut 4 x 4 or 4×3 depending upon the slice size. Throw them in a bowl

Cut rounds first. Then cut the rounds into 12-16 pieces each

Just a small simple dice

3. Do the same thing – core and dice a whole pepper. I bought two – but one was just fine. Throw the dices in the bowl with the cucumber

I just used the orange one…

4. Throw the shredded carrots in! I bought them already shredded since price-wise it was the same and saved me the work!

Carrot shreds – also filling

5. Dice up the Gruyere cheese and yes, then throw it in the bowl

You can save the rinds for stock – but I didn’t

Cheese is protein – and filling

6. Mix it all up.

7. Option – take one slice of prosciutto and place it between two pieces of paper towel and microwave it on high for 1 minute

BEFORE – The prosciutto adds salt and crunch and yum

AFTER: Crispy goodness

8. Portion out one serving into a bowl and top with 1 tsp of sunflower seeds and some of the crispy prosciutto

9. Top with 1 tbsp of Ken’s Steakhouse Italian dressing. Stir and enjoy

I like me some Ken’s

Chop Chop Salad in no time at all!

Listen, people – the clock is running. You can’t stop summer from coming and it’s time to get prepared. So Chop to it!