Healthy Salads

Tomatoes, tomatoes, and more tomatoes. This delicious salad recipe brings together three varieties of one of summer's healthiest fruits to make for a light but satisfying meal.

Tomatoes are rich in naturally occurring vitamin C, beta-carotene, and vitamin K. They also contain many other vitamins, minerals, and phyto-nutrients, including lycopene. Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant that numerous studies indicate has the ability to reduce your risk of developing many different varieties of cancer.

Cucumber and red onion slices combine to make a refreshing, crunchy, and sweet salad dish, perfect for the dog days of summer. If you can find smaller cucumbers, the kind used to make dill pickles, use as many of them as you need to substitute for the 3 conventional cucumbers that this recipe calls for.

The quantities listed in the ingredients section make approximately 6 servings.

This salad recipe calls for a classic combination of sweet and sour - the sweet supplied by ripe pears, and the sour brought on by the pickles and vinaigrette. It also provides a refreshing and delightful crunch from the jicama strips.

Although you can use any variety of pears for this recipe, we like it best with bosc or Bartlett pears.

If you are looking for the most delicious salad ever, then stop, because the search is over.

This recipe is loaded with bright colors and flavors, bringing together plenty of health-promoting antioxidants found in blackberries, basil, and salad greens. Just be sure to follow the tossing instructions found below to make this salad the experience that it should be.

Ingredients:

2 medium red beets, peeled and shredded
1 small to medium jicama, peeled and shredded
2 medium to large carrots, peeled and shredded
3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons of vinegar
2 teaspoons of any variety of mustard
Sea salt, to taste

Directions:

If you don't have a good shredder that can process the beets, jicama, and carrots, into neat, thin strips, you can use a good knife to julienne these vegetables into matchstick-like strips. Read more »

Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 cups of washed baby spinach leaves
1 fennel bulb
1/2 cup of green lentils
5 tablespoons of cold pressed, extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic, unpeeled
4 tablespoons of lemon juice or red wine vinegar, whichever you prefer
Sea salt and black pepper
Small handful of roughly chopped parsley, basil, or mint

Directions: Read more »

Ingredients:

5-7 cups of salad greens like romaine lettuce and red leafy lettuce
1 large apple (any variety will do), cored and chopped into bite-size pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup of raw walnuts
2 to 4 tablespoons of your favorite salad dressing - extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and sea salt works well with this recipe

Directions:

Combine greens, apples, and walnuts in a large bowl and toss with salad dressing. Read more »

Ingredients:

1 medium to large pomegranate, seeded
1 apple, chopped
1 small handful of whole or halved walnuts
1-2 big handfuls of field greens
1 rib of celery, chopped
2 tablespoons of orange juice
1 teaspoon raw honey

Directions:

Combine pomegranate seeds, apples, walnuts, greens and celery in a large bowl. Read more »

Ingredients:

1 large cucumber, peeled
1 large field tomato, diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
3 tablespoons house dressing, or 3 tablespoons of balsalmic vinegar and sea salt, to taste

Directions:

The key to this recipe is to slice the peeled cucumber down the middle, length wise, and use a spoon to scoop out all the seeds. Then, chop cucumber into bite-size pieces, mix with all ingredients in a large bowl, toss with dressing, and chill for one hour before serving.

Enjoy this refreshing and nutritious summer salad.

This crunchy and tasty salad is best made with a good vegetable shredder called a mandolin. If you don't have a mandolin but want to buy one, try your local asian food supermarket. Almost all Korean supermarkets carry an excellent one for around twenty-five dollars.

Jicama is a white-fleshed root vegetable that is a good source of vitamin C. It adds a great crunchy component to salads.

Ingredients: Read more »