Salads

Salads are compulsory if you want to eat nutritionally, this goes for todlers, teens, adults and elderly. A salad from my perspective is made up predominately of raw vegetables. Whilst adding, small amounts of nuts, seeds or cooked vegetables, can add extra taste or interest to your dish, you want the bulk of your salad to be raw. It’s worth noting that some people with certain digestive issues cannot tolerate raw foods and this intolerance will persist until improvements in digestion are made.

Salad Bulk

To start your salad choose from one of the below as your main player:

lettuce – the darker the more nutrients

rocket – has a bite to it!

cabbage – use white or red

baby spinach

herbs – yes herbs such as corriander, basil, parsley can all be used as bulkers, you just need enough of them, either just one or you can combine them, in many cultures the base of a salad is made predominately from herbs.

Please note you don’t always have to use a bulker, if you are not going to though, you just need to add more of the fillers.

Salad Fillers

Well this can literally be any raw vegetable or fruit (tomatoes are a fruit not a vegetable), here are some ideas;

• tomatoes – cucumber – celery – fennel – capsicum – carrots
• eggplants – zucchini – cauliflower – brocoli (these can be eaten raw!)
• beans – cauliflower – brocoli – pumpkin – sweet potatoe (these can be lightly steamed or roasted)

Adding A Bit Of Interest

The below can add a lovely and powerful taste to your salad, overdoing these may out crowd your greens!

• nuts – cashew – walnuts – peacans – macadamias – almonds – pinenuts – (use raw, ideally pre soaked or activated – but dont let that nessasary stop you)
• seeds – quinoa (cooked or soaked) – flaxseeds (ground) – chiaseeds (ground) – sunflower seeds – pumpkin seeds
• fruits – mango – pear – apple (all can add sweetness to your salad)

Flavour – The Game Changer

Select from either;

extra virgin olive oil – flaxseed oil (keep in the fridge) – mayonnaise (homemade see below)

Then add one or all;

salt (himalayan, celtic, sea, rock or any mineral salt) – pepper – kelp granuels

Then add one of the following;

fresh lemon – fresh lime – apple cider vinegar with mother – balsamic vinegar (choose one without sugar)

Additional Taste Enhancers

garlic – spring onion – red onion – brown onion – chili – feta (try sheep or goats) – goats curd

For Fussy People (kids or adults!)

Start by just chopping up salad vegetables you know they like, pop on a plate and smother with lemon and a little salt – let them see you eating them, each day add a different vegetable to accompany the one or ones they like – make no comment on what they are or aren’t eating, and eat what they don’t! 🙂

IMPORTANT NOTES

Use fresh, fresh, fresh produce, no one is interested in wilted salad leaves, ensure that what you have put together tastes good, add more lemon or vinegar etc to get the taste right.

Enjoy

Maria