Acid-Free Salad Dressings

Now that I am on the acid-reflux diet, I have a love/hate relationship with salad. As a healthy eater, salad is a big part of my regular routine. I eat at least one salad a day. I’ve always loved salad, even as a kid. When the doctor put me on the acid reflux diet, I was told to stop eating vinegar and citrus – basically, all salad dressing.

So, I have a confession to make. Salad is my cheat. I know, it sounds crazy – if I’m going to cheat, shouldn’t it be on something indulgent? Well, salad makes me feel good – just in a different way. It’s refreshing, tasty, and I feel great afterwards. I go light on the pour, and pick dressings made with berries, as they tend to have less vinegar. Still, I know I’m not doing what’s right for my belly.

I needed to find “better belly” salad dressings. I did some experimentation and created two salad dressings that not only lack acid, but are extremely healthy.

Creamy Dill dressing
This creamy dressing also makes a great dip for crudités. It’s also vegan.

• Three quarters of a cup silken tofu
• Half a large cucumber
• Half a teaspoon chopped fresh dill
• Quarter teaspoon salt

Peel cucumber and remove seeds.
Grate cucumber onto dishcloth, squeeze contents to remove excess water.
Combine all ingredients with a blender until mix is smooth.

Caesar Dressing
• Half cup silken tofu
• Quarter cup extra virgin olive oil
• Quarter teaspoon anchovy paste (or more, to taste)
• Quarter teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients with a blender until smooth.

Drunken Moules

On the acid reflux diet, we’re not supposed to have alcohol. However, not all alcohols are made equal. Wine is inherently acidic, but beer doesn’t have anything in it other than the alcohol to trigger acid reflux. So, if you’re not using a lot of it, beer is a great alternative to acidic liquids. Some of the alcohol will burn off, and the rest will not be enough to cause the reflux.

Most French restaurants cook mussels with white wine or tomatoes. The Belgian version, with beer, is much better for our bellies.

Ingredients:
• Two pounds of mussels
• One stalk celery, chopped
• Two cloves garlic, sliced
• Half shallot, minced (optional)
• Two tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• Half teaspoon salt, or to taste
• One teaspoon non-dairy buttery spread
• Half cup Belgian Ale, such as Leffe

Requires a large pot or deep sauté pan, with a lid.
Make sure all mussels are clean, de-bearded, and still kicking. If you don’t know how to do it, you can watch this.
Heat olive oil in the pan. Sauté celery, garlic, shallot, parsley, and salt until soft and sweating.
Add beer and heat until just at a boil.
Mix in buttery spread.
Add mussels and cover tightly.
Steam mussels for five minutes, or until they are all open.