Nutty Super Salad

Nutty Super Salad

Even the pup is crazy about this salad.

I'm a big fan of meals that can be made with a general combination of items versus following a strict recipe. This salad is a great concept that becomes a quickly lunch or dinner.

Ingredients

Costco's 7 Superfood salad mix
An array of nuts and seeds (I like to add chia seeds, walnuts, and extra pepitas)

OR

Kale, chopped
Pre-cut cole slaw mix
Radicchio, chopped
A few Brussels Sprouts, sliced thin
Dried cherries or cranberries (preferably with no added sugar)
Poppyseed dressing (I tend to choose Annie's Organic Lite Poppyseed Dressing.)
An array of nuts and seeds (I like to us chia seed, walnuts and pepitas)

Directions

Mix everything together. Eat.

Notes
-You dont need much dressing with this salad. If you're trying to cut back on added sugars, maybe try cutting the store-bought dressing with some extra virgin olive oil. It'll go further and you'll get some extra heart healthy fats.
-This is great with white beans or leftover grilled chicken for a little more protein.
-Don't feel like cutting the kale and radicchio? Check out the Earthbound Organic salad blends and use that.
-Other add-in ideas - fresh fruit, edamame, alfalfa sprouts

Dried Fruit & Nut Bars

Dried Fruit & Nut Bars

Ingredients

1/3 c cashews

2/3 c pitted dates

¼ tsp vanilla extract

½ tsp unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions

1. Chop all ingredients in a food processor or blender until well combined into a paste. You could use a knife and chop everything by hand if you didn’t have either tool. You’ll just need to chop a LOT.
2. Once well mixed, place mixture onto a sheet of wax or parchment paper. Use a spatula to guide it into a line, then roll the mixture tightly, pressing down slightly to compact into a large bar. Careful it doesn’t come out the ends of the wax paper though!
3. Chill in refrigerator for about 30 minutes, and then cut into 5 bars or 10-12 bite-size squares. Store in refrigerator, in an airtight container with the wax paper folded between layers of bars. Enjoy within the week or freeze for later.

Notes

• IMPORTANT – measuring for this recipe is a little tough to standardize! To test the consistency, press a bit of the processed mixture between your fingers. It should be moist but not sticky, and definitely not crumbly. The good thing is you can just adjust it! If too sticky, add more nuts. If too crumbly, add more dried fruit. You’ll get the hang of it!
• Try different flavor, or fruit and nut combinations! Leave out the cocoa powder, or try a bar with almonds and dried cherries. You could even experiment with cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice or mint for different flavors.

Orange Pomegranate Salsa

My mother-in-law is wonderful. She made this salsa, which is also wonderful. Flavorful, healthy and beautiful. 

Mandarin Pomegranate Salsa

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients

Juice from 1 lime

2 T honey

½ tsp salt

Seeds from 2 pomegranates

4 green onions, chopped small

½ c cilantro, minced

1 jalapeño, seeded and minced (optional)

6 clementines, peeled, broken into segments and chopped roughly

2 avocados, diced

Directions

Mix lime juice, honey and salt in a large bowl. Add pomegranate seeds, green onions, cilantro, jalapeño and oranges. Stir well. Gently fold in diced avocado. Serve with tortilla chips, over a bed of spinach as a salad, or as a topping for grilled shrimp, salmon or chicken.

Notes

You can make this a day before serving. Wait to add the avocado until just before serving.

Check for pomegranate arils in your grocery store’s freezer!

If pomegranates aren’t in season, you can make this salsa with two crisp red apples instead, like fuji or pink lady. Dice the apples small and leave the skins on so the salsa still has a pop of red.