Zesty Italian Salad with Homemade Dressing

 I used to make a salad similar to this when my husband and I were first married. We would make it nearly every weekend when we had friends over for games and dinner!!  We used to drown it in Kraft zesty Italian dressing! Now I make my own salad dressings so I know exactly what I am eating! This is my healthified version of the zesty Italian dressing and salad I used to make!! I have to say it made me SO HAPPY to eat this because it was utterly delicious and also healthy for my body! It made me feel GOOD after I ate it!!  That is the ultimate goal for me with food....yummy and healthy! 

Zesty Italian Salad with Homemade Dressing 

Red leaf lettuce, chopped

grape tomatoes, halved

black olives, drained

baby carrots, chopped

fresh mozzarella, cubed

artichoke hearts, chopped

cooked quinoa

(Dressing)

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

2/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup raw honey

2 t minced garlic

1 T Italian seasoning

1 t dried basil

1/2 t onion powder

1/2 t Himalayan salt

1/2 t black pepper

1/2 t crushed red pepper

Mix all ingredients for dressing in blender and place in quart glass mason jar or cruet. (This makes it easier to shake it up if needed.) We served this salad buffet style so we could choose which ingredients we wanted and how much!! (Which is why there is no exact ingredient amounts for the salad portion.) But you could also mix everything together and serve as one big salad. Enjoy!!