Spirit as Healer, Lifestyle as Medicine
In addition to incredible volume to help keep you full, this salad provides a remarkable amount of bioactive compounds. Cauliflower is a member of the brassica family known for their powerful cancer-protecting properties. Parsley is rich in immune-supporting Vitamin C and green onions contain immune and liver boasting sulfur-compounds. Olive oil is a source of desirable monounsaturated fat and, given that all ingredients are enjoyed raw, this salad is a strong natural ‘digestive’.
Apples contain fibers and polyphenols that help regulate the breakdown of carbohydrate and slow the absorption of sugar from the digestive tract. They are also rich in prebiotic fibers which act as food for our healthy native strains of gut bacterial. Proof that ‘super foods’ don’t have to be super fancy!
This salad is as pretty as it is nutritious. Pomegranates have various bioactive compounds that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties against cancer cells. The arils are also a wonderful source of vitamin C and potassium needed to regulate blood pressure. The prebiotic and soluble fibers also help regulate the native strains of gut bacteria. This is a lot of health activity from something we just call “lunch”!
I love turning ingredient labels into recipes so played with this one – adding edamame for more protein and came up with the following adaptation of this salad. The smell is absolutely intoxicating as you make this salad. I haven’t tried the store’s version of it to see how close I am to the original in taste, but I think that’s OK.
This is another take on the popular CARE Orange and Grape Chicken Salad. With this version, I want to show you how easy it is to create a completely new taste with just a few substitutions. In this case, I change out oranges to take advantage of now in-season blueberries. I also switch to a low-fat mayo allowing me to add extra nutrition and crunch with the addition of walnuts.
This lunch is surprisingly fast to put together. Once the hash is made (either the first day you make it or made-ahead over the weekend), toss with pre-shredded greens and a reheated lean sausage (or other protein of choice) for a nutrient-rich lunch… with tater tots.