I am a label reader. If I'm checking out a new product at the grocery store, you'd better believe I'm scouring the ingredients for funky stuff. I'll flip over many a box and bottle
Too much sodium? Back on the shelf. High fructose corn syrup? No thanks. Loads of preservatives and artficial flavors and colors? See ya later.
I am also a salad dressing aficionado. You should see my fridge door -- it's packed with bottles (you can see it at left). I'm always on the prowl for a creative accompaniment to a big ol' pile of greens.
Truth be told, I'm a salad dressing snob -- I've ordered it by mail, brought my own bottle to my parents' house for Sunday dinner and even stashed a a bottle of the good stuff in the office refrigerator.
So when Clever Girls Collective offered me the chance to try out Marzetti Simply Dressed salad dressing I knew we'd be a perfect fit. I've spied it at the grocery store in the produce department. If it needs to be refrigerated that's a sign that it's not laden with sodium and preservatives. What first drew me to the dressings was the cute stubby bottle shape and label design -- I'm a sucker for that kind of stuff.
I checked out the Pomegranate because, frankly, it was the lowest in calories (this is a weight-loss blog after all). Two tablespoons is only 60 calories and 4.5 grams of fat with zero sat fat. Plus, it's gluten free, nicely low in sodium (150 mg) and contains 150 mg of omega-3 ALA per serving. (All the Simply Dressed varieties are gluten free except for the Ginger Sesame, which gets its wheat from the soy sauce in it.) There's no high fructose corn syrup, no preservatives, no MSG and no artificial flavors or colors.
What does it have? A nicely tart-sweet flavor and ruby red color, which was great on my salad of supergreens, tomatoes and leftover chicken breast. I also think the Pomegranate flavor would be great on a fruit-laden salad, like my favorite baby spinach and sliced strawberry combo.
Lil' food tip: If you're using a flavorful, high-quality product, you don't need to drown your salad in it.
If Pomegranate doesn't interest you, there are lots of flavors to choose from:
- Balsamic
- Blue Cheese
- Caesar
- Champagne
- Coleslaw
- Ginger Sesame
- Greek Feta
- Pomegranate
- Ranch
- Strawberry Poppyseed
- Thousand Island
You'll have to check with your local grocery store to see which ones it stocks. I'm hoping my store will also start stocking Marzetti's brand new Simply Dressed & Light line, too, because so-called "diet" salad dressings can be simply awful and these look to be great with clean ingredients and skinny nutritional stats. The Light flavors include:
- Blue Cheese
- Caesar
- Celery Seed Slaw
- Ranch
- Raspberry Acai
I knew I had made a good choice when both the cashier and the bagger saw the bottle and said that they liked the line of dressings. Usually, grocery store employees look at my weekly haul of Greek yogurt, flaxseeds and brussels sprouts and make funny faces. Not so the Simply Dressed.
I was one of the bloggers selected by T. Marzetti Company and Clever Girls Collective to host a Marzetti Simply Dressed review. They provided me with product to test myself and compensation for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own.
