Dressing Down Salads

Cool, crunchy salads are especially appealing during long, hot summer days. The only problem is that if you use regular bottled dressing, or even a homemade traditional dressing, your light, “just-a-salad” meal becomes a high-calorie, high-fat meal. Our solution: We’ve taken a few classic dressings and created our own quick, low-fat versions to mix and match with your favorite salads. Each has less than one gram of fat per tablespoon.

At only 11 calories and little or no fat per serving, the creamy thousand island dressing is made with low-fat mayonnaise and chopped cooked egg white along with seasonings and just enough milk to give a good spooning consistency. This comes to a savings of four grams of fat per tablespoon over the original.

The green goddess dressing is for anchovy lovers. Low-fat mayonnaise, nonfat milk, parsley, green onion, anchovy and other flavoring ingredients are all blended together until smooth. The result is a very flavorful dressing at only 13 calories per tablespoon. That’s quite a savings from the high-fat version at 67 calories and 6 grams of fat per tablespoon.

The ranch dressing is made with nonfat sour cream, low-fat mayonnaise and buttermilk along with herbs and flavorings. It comes to only 8 calories per tablespoon. The original recipe weighed in with 25 calories and 2 grams of fat.

NONFAT THOUSAND ISLAND DRESSING

2 hard-boiled egg whites

1 cup nonfat mayonnaise

1/4 cup chili sauce

1 tablespoon drained sweet pickle relish

1 tablespoon minced green onion

1 small clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

1 to 2 tablespoons nonfat milk

Chop egg whites.

Combine egg whites, mayonnaise, chili sauce, pickle relish, onion, garlic and pepper in bowl. Stir in enough milk to thin to desired consistency.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Each 1-tablespoon serving contains about:

11 calories; 124 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 0 fat; 3 grams carbohydrates; 0 protein; 0.01 gram fiber.

NONFAT GREEN GODDESS SALAD DRESSING

1 cup nonfat mayonnaise

1 cup parsley, stems removed

1/4 cup chopped green onion tops

2 tablespoons anchovy paste

2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar

Juice 1/2 lemon

2 cloves garlic

Freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup nonfat milk

Combine mayonnaise, parsley, green onions, anchovy paste, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, pepper and nonfat milk in blender. Process until smooth.

Makes 1 1/3 cups.

Each 1-tablespoon serving contains about:

13 calories; 114 mg sodium; 1 cholesterol; 0 fat; 3 grams carbohydrates; 0 protein; 0.08 gram fiber.

NONFAT RANCH-STYLE DRESSING

1/2 cup nonfat sour cream

1/2 cup nonfat mayonnaise

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon grated onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon dried basil leaves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram leaves, crushed

1/2 teaspoon salt

Blend together sour cream and mayonnaise in bowl.

Stir in buttermilk until blended. Stir in onion, garlic, oregano leaves, basil leaves, marjoram leaves, and salt. Chill until serving time.

Makes 2 cups.

Each 1-tablespoon serving contains about:

8 calories; 79 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 0 fat; 2 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0 fiber.

Rubino alabaster hand-painted ceramic dinnerware and Alberi green Provence fluted bowl from Room With a View, Santa Monica.