by Claudia Montoro
This simple salad is perfect for spring holidays! The ingredients are drenched with vital anti-oxidant nutrients and color.
Choose spinach with a few details in mind. Bagged spinach has good flavor and less waste and is fairly well trimmed and washed. However, even triple washed may still have sand and grit. Baby spinach has small delicate leaves, very mild flavor and can be used with stems on. Bunched spinach has the best true flavor and texture but is pretty sandy and needs trimmed. An alternative to spinach is arugula. Some folks enjoy the more pungent taste. With either choice you can buy leaves nearly ready to serve. The sweet Maui-style Winter Squash and Citrus Soup onions, fruits and vanilla-scented dressing balance well with the texture and earthy flavor of greens. For a whole meal salad, top with grilled shrimp, poached salmon or baked teriyaki-flavored tofu.
Following the rule of rainbow nutrition (vary your colors to vary your nutrients), enjoy potassium for heart health, caroteniods for a healthy immune system, bioflavonoid and folates (vitamin B’s) for guarding against certain cancers and vitamin C for overall healthy cell function. Your springtime healthy table is so easy. Hop to it and enjoy!
Ingredients
- Fresh Spinach, washed and broken 6 cups (about 6 ounces)
- Pineapple, pre-sliced and cut into cubes 1 cup
- Sweet Hawaiian onion, very thinly sliced 1 small or ½ large, sliced, separated into rings
- Pomegranate seeds or small berries 2 tablespoons
Dressing:
- Wine vinegar, white or fruited ¼ cu
- Extra virgin olive oil 2 teaspoons
- Sugar 1 teaspoon
- Salt ¼ teaspoon
- Vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon
Combine dressing ingredients and set aside. Toss spinach leaves and pineapple cubes with the dressing. Arrange the sweet onion on top of the spinach leaves. Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds or berries. Serves 4.
Nutritional 3 grams fat, 4 grams protein and 5 grams dietary fiber per serving.
healthy table
creating cuisine for your healthy dining
claudia montoro
619.218.5896
healthytable@cox.net
