By Kristen Coffield
Ditch boring bagged salads in favor of delicate spring greens!
It’s a fact that eating more plants is the key to improved health, longevity and a healthier planet.
It might seem like a shortcut to buy that bag of spring mix or romaine, but pre-made salads have a certain yucky tang. We eat them, but we don’t love them. There is a running joke about buying a bag of spring mix so you can toss it at the end of the week.
Every time we eat, we choose to support or diminish the healing capabilities of our bodies. What we eat and drink profoundly impacts our health, happiness and productivity. Healing our bodies with nutritious food also helps to calm our busy brains. As humans, we are an ecosystem. When we honor our bodies with the things they need to thrive, we are rewarded by looking good, feeling great and creating future wellness. Because what we eat and drink today shows up as tomorrow’s health.
Make way for salad that nourishes the body, delights the palate and is addictively delicious.
DIY Salad Mix
Ingredients
•1 head Boston or bibb lettuce
• 1 head red leaf or butter lettuce
• 1 head radicchio
• Salad spinner
Directions
1. Remove the outer leaves of lettuces and radicchio.
2. Fill the sink with cold water.
3. Slice romaine crossways into bite-size pieces. Cut radicchio in quarters, remove the white core, and slice into bite-sized pieces. Tear butter or leaf lettuce into bite-sized pieces and place all the lettuce into the sink with cold water.
4. After the lettuce soaks for a few minutes, drain the sink and spin the salad dry.
5. Store salad in ziplock (I use reusable silicone ones) bags with the air gently pressed out.
The salad mix keeps for a week in an air-tight bag.
Deliciously addictive lemon shallot vinaigrette
Ingredients
• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice – a good lemon juicer makes it simple • 2/3 cup best-quality olive oil – preferably first press extra-virgin
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt • 1⁄4 to 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Directions
Place all ingredients in a shaker bottle or mason jar and shake vigorously. Let rest for 10 minutes or longer before dressing the salad.
The writer is the founder and owner of The Culinary Cure and is an author, educator and culinary disruptor. She is a regular contributor on Good Morning Washington, ABC7 and Fox5.
