Monday, November 02, 2015

Creamy Asian Cabbage Salad With Black Sesame Seeds Featuring "Just Mayo" From Beyond Eggs

Raw cabbage is inexpensive, delicious and healthy!
And it's only 53 calories per serving!

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Hampton Creek's Egg Replacer
Whether you eat eggs or not, there's something interesting brewing in the food industry. Hampton Creek, a fast-growing food company, is trying to develop food that is eco-friendly, compassionate, and healthy. And, of course, delicious - something many vegan food products are not. Their first target is to replace the egg.

They haven't come out will a product that will make scrambled eggs yet, although they are supposedly quite close, but they have developed a pretty delicious mayo substitute called "Just Mayo." 


Just Mayo comes in four flavors:
Original, Chipotle, Garlic, and Sriracha.

I'm not a big mayo eater but now and then you need a little bit for a creamy dressing like the one I'll share with you today. I'm also not terribly fond of vegan mayo because it doesn't have the taste or texture of real mayonnaise but this product really does. It's not that I totally exclude eggs from my diet. I'm lucky enough to have several friends who raise the happiest chickens on the planet. But when you buy regular mayonnaise, you can bet that the chickens that produce those eggs are from industrial farms and I don't like to support companies like that. 

What's in Just Mayo?
The ingredients include expeller-pressed non-GMO canola oil, while vinegar, and 2% or less of the following: organic sugar, salt, pea protein, spices, modified food starch, lemon juice concentrate, fruit and vegetable juice (color), and calcium disodium EDTA to preserve freshness. 

1 tablespoon provides:
90 calories
10 g total fat
1 g saturated fat (no trans fat)
Zero g of cholesterol 
80 mg sodium
Zero g carbohydrates, fiber, sugar, and protein

               *                           *                            *

My Favorite Cabbage Salad
There's a Japanese restaurant nearby that has the best cabbage salad. It's big and it's meant to share with the table but every time I go there, I eat an entire bowl or two of it. The last time I was there, I came home determined to make it myself. I think my recipe is a bit lighter (more vinegar, less mayo), but it's pretty darn close to what they serve at the restaurant. I'm excited to use Just Mayo as the base.

Besides being delicious, raw cabbage is extremely healthy to eat. First of all, it's a cruciferous vegetable which can help prevent cancers such as bladder, colon, and prostate but only if it's eaten raw or lightly cooked. Plus, it's a great source of dietary fiber, vitamin C, folate, potassium and manganese. It's also a good source of vitamin A, B6, thiamin, calcium, iron and magnesium. All this for one of the least expensive veggies you can find!

Creamy Asian Cabbage Salad with Black Sesame Seeds
Vegan, Gluten and Dairy Free
(makes 1/2 cup dressing)

Ingredients for the dressing
1/4 cup Just Mayo
1/4 cup Marukan organic seasoned rice vinegar
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon pressed or grated fresh garlic
2 teaspoons black sesame seeds plus some for sprinkling

For the salad
1 to 2 cups very thinly sliced cabbage per person

Directions
To make the dressing, place the Just Mayo in a small bowl. Slowly stir in the rice vinegar and then the ginger, garlic and 2 teaspoons of the sesame seeds. I don't think it needs any salt but if you do, add a little pinch. There's already some in the mayo.

Place the cabbage in a large bowl and dress with the desired amount of dressing. To keep the calories low, start with 1 tablespoon of dressing per 1 1/2 to 2 cups of cabbage. Add more if needed. Sprinkle with a few extra black sesame seeds. Serve with chop sticks.




Nutrition
Per tablespoon of dressing: 53 calories, 5 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0 g protein, 1.5 g carbohydrates, 0 g dietary fiber, and 160 mg sodium. 

Per 1 1/2 cups of cabbage: 18 calories, 0 g total fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 g protein, 3 g carbohydrates, 1 g dietary fiber, and 9 mg sodium.

If you enjoyed this recipe, check out my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen.





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