Pass the salad, please. New research published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association has found that starting your meal with a low-calorie salad may be a good way to lose weight.

Dr. Barbara J. Rolls and her research team at Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Penn., served a group of women lunch. Each began with a 11/2- to three-cup (375 to 750 millilitre) salad. The calorie counts of the salads varied from 50 to 400 calories. Each woman was required to eat the whole salad, then as much as she wanted from pasta main course. A control group ate the same main course without salad to start.

The researchers found that the women who ate a low-calorie salad before the main course consumed seven to 12 per cent fewer calories than the women who didn't. And the larger the portion of low-calorie salad, the fewer calories a woman ate of the main course. On the other hand, women who ate a 400-calorie salad ate 17 per cent more calories than the women who'd had no salad at all. The researchers concluded that filling up on a large portion of a low-calorie food at the start of a meal may be an effective strategy for weight management.

Note: The most calories in any salad usually come from the dressing. Use your discretion and drizzle wisely.

Try these other salads:
• Make-ahead seafood salad
• Warm Bulgur, Bean and Vegetable Salad
• Salad of Greens, Fennel and Tangerines with Honey-Lime Vinaigrette
• Spinach Salad with Piquant Currant Dressing
• Tomato Cucumber Salad with Oregano Dressing

For hundreds more delicious low-calorie salad recipes, search salad in the Canadian Living recipe search.