The lunch it is not just a meal, but the moment of the day, during the week, which interrupts our work activities, giving us the opportunity to recover energy and tranquility to continue every commitment profitably. A space of time in which the right cannot be missing balance of relaxation and taste, especially in a chaotic and frenetic city like Rome.
In addition to this, we must consider that what we choose to eat can affect our physical state and mental concentration. In general it is better to choose light but varied dishes in terms of ingredients. Of course, if you don't plan too demanding activities for the afternoon, you can also treat yourself to something richer and more substantial.
What to prefer for a light lunch break
There is no shortage of ideas for light and tasty lunches, suitable both as a refreshment and as a moment of pleasure, even to share with your work colleagues. Certainly vegetables, salads, lean meats and fish are the most suitable foods in this case and the infinite possibilities of combinations that lend themselves to making guarantee the best response for any palate.
The “salad”, in particular, represent a must among the light and healthy proposals for lunch. There are many types but some in particular have been confirmed as classic salads and are part of various Mediterranean and international traditions. Salads that combine a particular balance of ingredients and flavors, capable of satiating the appetite.
Classic salads: unique balanced and tasty dishes
Cesar Salad
This very famous salad is of American origins but its inventor was the Italian chef Cesare Cardini, who emigrated to America after the First World War. The first Cesar salad was created by Cardini to accommodate a large turnout of people in his restaurant on Thanksgiving Day. It was the 1924. The cook took everything available in the pantry, including parmesan, lettuce and bread, which he combined with a simple dressing of garlic, oil, egg yolk, lemon and worcester sauce. He sautéed the bread in a pan with oil, salt and garlic and added it to the salad making it crunchier and tastier. There are numerous variations of the traditional Cesar salad, the most common is the one with the addition of grilled chicken breast.
Caprese
The Caprese salad, however, is one all Italian recipe, of Capri to be more specific and from which the name derives. It seems, in fact, that it was here, at the Quisisana hotel, that it was created for the first time. It was the 1920s and Caprese was served during a Futurist dinner attended by the founder of the movement Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, who was very critical of traditional cuisine. Caprese, composed with mozzarella, tomato and basil, and seasoned with oil and salt, was designed as an alternative dish to traditional pasta.
Nice
There Nice it's a salad typical of the south of France, typically summer, which in addition to lettuce and other raw seasonal vegetables, combines various vegetables, including peppers, artichokes, olives, tomatoes and anchovies. Nutritious and tasty ingredients that have made this salad a much revisited classic. Especially in the neighboring territories of Provence, such as Liguria. Here the Nizzarda is offered in an equally tasty and tasty variant, with green beans and boiled potatoes instead of peppers.
Greek
There Greek cuisine, has always exported, in this salad, the image of its sun-kissed land. Simple garden produce, such as lettuce, cucumbers, ripe tomatoes and onion. In addition, olives and feta, fresh sheep or goat cheese, dried oregano and small croutons. Nothing could be simpler and more inviting for a summer lunch, but also in winter, for those nostalgic for the summer, perhaps accompanied by a soft, hot focaccia freshly baked.
From 'Taste the goodness of classic salads, complete dishes for a healthy and light lunch, are offered with some variations: the Cesar Salad with grilled chicken, iceberg, parmesan flakes, crouton and Caesar sauce; the Caprese with buffalo mozzarella, tomato, basil and oregano; the Nicoise with green beans, tuna, hard-boiled eggs, anchovies and cherry tomatoes and the Greca with Greek feta, cherry tomatoes, onion, tomatoes and cucumbers.
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