Three things converged to inspire tonight’s creative endeavor: it was hot today, with a heat index this afternoon of 105 degrees, making cooking undesirable; today is Fresh Veggies Day, which is the perfect holiday for one living a plant based lifestyle; and I wanted to try a new healthy honey mustard dressing recipe I found. It was the perfect evening for a fresh, chopped veggie salad for dinner!
I loved discovering that this was Fresh Veggies Day. My research didn’t turn up any info about this celebration, other than it is always recognized on June 16. However, it was easy enough to figure out how to celebrate…eat fresh veggies!
I had already planned on a large chopped salad tonight , due to the warm temps, so what a happy occurrence. For me, the more veggies thrown into the mix, the better. I gathered the vegetables, and the ingredients for a simple, healthy version of Honey Mustard Dressing, from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen on Pinterest.
The dressing was a cinch to mix up, requiring only four ingredients. I popped the mason jar into the fridge while I chopped veggies for the salad.
The beauty of creating a chopped veggie salad is that any vegetable can be included. I used an assortment of fresh veggies, including celery, kale and spinach (from my garden), red onion, green, red and yellow peppers, banana peppers, carrots, tomatoes, zucchini and cucumber. For protein, I included two cups each of black beans and garbanzo beans. I added coarsely ground sea salt and black pepper, and topped the whole thing with a diced avocado.
This was one delicious meal! And during the summer months, this is my favorite kind of dinner. No cooking (I used canned organic beans), no fuss, very little clean up. I also got to use a vintage cut glass cruet, that once belonged to my Aunt Annie, to hold my chilled Honey Mustard Dressing.
Both the salad and the dressing were wonderful! The honey mustard dressing was tangy and light and paired perfectly with the colorful chopped veggies. I’ll be making it often. I celebrated Fresh Veggies Day in the best possible way, with a healthy meal full of flavor.
And I have leftovers! I get to enjoy a chopped veggie salad with honey mustard dressing again tomorrow.
