Low fat dressing and healthy seasoning

The problem: Healthy vinegar dressing is often tough to stomach, and many salad ingredients such as tuna, potatoes and feta cheese absorb dressing so readily that you can end up dousing your 'healthy' option in gallons of oil, sending the calorie count sky high.

> The fatal mistake we make: Oil is always the culprit.   

> How to cheat: Use low-acidity vinegar (cider, balsamic, sherry or wine vinegar) instead of oil-heavy dressings, and  add orange, grapefruit or lemon juice to vinaigrette (recipes permitting).

To make healthy creamy sauces and dressings, use low-fat soft cream cheese and yoghurt in place of mayonnaise. Try mixing low-fat cream cheese with a spoonful of mustard, a spoonful of oil and a spoonful of vinegar, and use in place of mayo in potato salad. It tastes just as good and isn't half as greasy!

In Oriental dishes, use soy sauce or rice vinegar for flavouring (tip: don't add salt to soy sauce - it contains plenty). Add a tablespoonful of water to make your sauce go a bit further. 

Replace the usual mayo/fatty dressings with low-fat versions in these yummy recipes: chicken and pineapple salad, light Waldorf salad, artichoke and almond salad and spicy potato salad.

Try making these recipes with healthier oil dressings: red pepper salad with sherry vinegar and Balaton salad with balsamic vinegar and lemon.