Coconut Lime Fruit Salad

Being from tropical West Africa there was never a shortage of delicious fruit. Most fruit tastes good just by itself, but especially when mixing several different kinds, I like to have a creamy dressing to add some flavor and tie together the flavors.

We went to a dinner gathering at a friend's house this evening and I threw together this salad and was really pleased with how it turned out. I was sure to snap a few pictures so I could put it up on the blog!

Coconut Lime Fruit Salad

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1 small pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1 inch pieces
3 medium to large bananas, peeled and sliced into 1 inch pieces
1 pint strawberries, hulled and chopped, or two ripe mangoes, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 pint blueberries

Coconut Lime Dressing, below

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the shredded coconut on a small baking sheet and toast at 350 degrees for about five minutes or until starting to brown.  Set aside.

Mix the fruit together in a large serving bowl. Toss with Coconut Lime Dressing to coat. Sprinkle with toasted coconut just before serving.

Coconut Lime Dressing:

2 Tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
4 Tablespoons coconut milk
2 Tablespoons honey

Whisk together all ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Serve over fruit.

Preparation time: 20 minutes (to chop the fruit). Cook time: 5 minutes. Servings: 12.

My little boy tried to swipe a piece of fruit while I took the picture!

{This recipe is linked up at Fat Tuesday, Traditional Tuesdays, Tasty Traditions and Whole Foods Wednesday.}

Wilted Kale and Bacon Salad

I love to make big brunches on Saturday morning. This morning we enjoyed cinnamon rolls, farm-fresh eggs, strawberries, and this delicious salad from Whole Lifestyle Nutrition. Everything turned out great and my husband said the salad tasted pretty good for something green :-). I found the salad tasted good mixed in with my over-easy runny eggs.

Speaking of Whole Lifestyle Nutrition, I am excited to share that I have been accepted as a monthly contributor! I'm thrilled to be a part of the WLN team and to learn and grow through this experience. I'll let you know when my first post is published in a few weeks here.

Kale is a very popular vegetable right now and is being consumed in a myriad of ways, from green smoothies, to steamed side dishes. This is overall a good thing, as kale is quite nutritious. What you might not know is that kale is one of the vegetables that is more nutritious when cooked. Yes, not every veggie out there is healthiest raw. Nourishing Traditions talks about this and it didn't come as a surprise to me as traditionally these tough dark greens were not eaten raw. For example, in West Africa all of the dark leafy greens are eaten cooked.

I personally don't digest raw kale too well (right away I feel fine, but after a few hours my digestive system starts protesting), so there's not much of a temptation for me to eat it raw. So I jumped at this recipe when I saw that it was wilted. 

This salad (obviously) calls for bacon, a very misunderstood yet still beloved meat. Bacon is not bad for you (especially naturally cured bacon from free range pigs), it's what's added to it that is. Always choose naturally cured bacon that is free of nitrates, if at all possible.

Please hop on over to Whole Lifestyle Nutrition for the recipe! 

Wilted Organic Kale and Bacon Salad

The only thing I changed from Halle's recipe is that I doubled the bacon... because I could. :-D.

What's your favorite wilted or cooked kale recipe? I would love some more ideas as kale is in season and we've been getting it in our local farm box orders.

Versatile Fruit, Nut, and Cheese Salad

If you think you don't like salad you may change your mind after trying this recipe!

These days restaurants, even fast food ones, are selling more and more interesting salads. But at home creativity may be lacking. 

This Versatile Fruit, Nut, and Cheese salad is not so much a recipe, but more about learning to use the ingredients you already have on hand to create a delicious green salad any night of the week. My Sweet Vinaigrette recipe ties together the sweet and savory flavors perfectly, but theoretically you could just use your favorite dressing for this recipe. 

Concerning salad dressings, though, store-bought salad dressings are very unhealthy and should all be replaced by homemade dressings with good quality ingredients like extra virgin olive oil, unpasteurized vinegar, yogurt, and fresh herbs. Bottled salad dressings in general are filled with unhealthy ingredients including bad oils (soy, canola, vegetable, sometimes even hydrogenated oils) that are already rancid before the dressing is even bottled (then it sits on a shelf forever before being put in your fridge where it also lives forever until it's all used up), lots of artificial ingredients, sweeteners and starches - including high fructose corn syrup, and preservatives. The fact alone that store-bought salad dressings have such a long refrigerator life should be concerning. Healthy food - REAL food - should spoil if not eaten right away, so when your food last forever you should question how good it really is for you. My homemade salad dressings last for about a week for creamy dressings made with yogurt and fresh herbs, and 2 to 3 weeks for vinaigrettes. 

My recipe for Sweet Vinaigrette is a very versatile and easy. Honestly, it's easier to throw this dressing together than to select a dressing and purchase one from the store. Also, making a good quality, nutritious salad dressing like this is cheaper than the bottled stuff, especially if you were already trying to buy the more expensive healthiER kinds.

Okay, back to the salad. Here are the basics:

Every good salad starts with good quality greens:

Dark green lettuce such as romaine, regular and red leaf lettuce, bib lettuce, etc. Notice I did not include spinach. Spinach actually is not healthy eaten raw. It is often touted as a high source of iron, but that iron can't be absorbed unless the spinach is steamed or lightly cooked. It's not terrible to eat a spinach salad on occasion, but it is not the healthy salad green it is typically thought of.

The fresh fruit:

Strawberries are my favorite fruit for this salad, but most fruits work. Blueberries and raspberries are good, chopped apples (great for fall), peaches, pears, even mangoes.

The dried fruit:

I love cranberries because they are nice and tart, but just about any dried fruit is good. The chewy texture is a great addition to any salad. Other ideas include raisins, apricots (chopped), mangoes, blueberries, etc.

The cheese:

I usually use feta, but blue cheese is also great if you are a fan. During pregnancy when the soft cheeses are not to be eaten I used cheddar or Colby jack cheese cut into half-inch cubes, which actually was very good. 

The nuts:

Nuts add great crunch and increased protein. I usually use almonds, as they are cheapest (aside from peanuts, which wouldn't go with too many flavors). Pecans are great, and walnuts would be great for fall. Toasted is best for the flavor.

The onions:

Onions add such an interesting twist to this kind of salad. You can omit if you hate onions, but if you're just unsure, I encourage you to give onions a try. Red onions are the strongest, green onions also have a stronger flavor, sweet onions (usually white or yellow) are more mild and may be better for kids.

The dressing:

Now, you could really use any dressing of your choice, but there is just something about a sweet vinaigrette that just ties together the sweet and savory aspects to this salad. Find my recipe below.

Optional meat:

I have also added meat to this salad for a delicious and light meal. Chicken goes surprisingly well with this combination of toppings. Thinly sliced steak is also great. Grilled meat gives the best flavor.

The Versatile Fruit, Nut, and Cheese Salad

The greens:

1 to 1 1/2 cups dark leafy greens per person

The fresh fruit:

1/4 cup chopped fresh fruit per person (such as strawberries, chopped apples, etc.)

The dried fruit:

1 to 2 tablespoons dried fruit per person (cranberries are my favorite)

The cheese:

2 tablespoons cheese per person (crumbled feta or blue cheese, 1/2 inch cubes cheddar, etc.)

The nuts:

1 tablespoon nuts per person (almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc). To toast the nuts, bake in a small baking sheet for about 4 to 5 minutes at 350 degrees, or until starting to brown lightly.

The onions:

1 tablespoon sliced onion per person (red onion, white onion, green onions)

To assemble:

Arrange lettuce and toppings in individual bowls or a shallow serving bowl. Serve with Sweet Vinaigrette.

Sweet Vinaigrette

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup apple cider or red wine vinegar

2 to 4 tablespoons natural sweetener (whole cane sugar, honey, maple syrup, etc.)*

1/4 teaspoon salt

Place all ingredients in a 1 pint jar. Screw the lid on tightly and shake vigorously to combine. The sweetener should cause the dressing to emulsify and thicken. Drizzle over salad just before serving.

*I prefer a tangier dressing so 2 tablespoons is enough for me, but 4 tablespoons is what most people prefer. Stevia can also be used for a low carb option, but the dressing will not emulsify.

Preparation time: 2 minutes. Yield: 3/4 to 1 cup.

Here are some other tasty combinations to try:

Strawberry Almond Salad 

(In photos above)

Leaf lettuce, or lettuce of your choice

Strawberries

Cranberries

Feta cheese

Slivered almonds

Red or white onions

Apple Walnut Salad 

(Great for fall!)

Lettuce of your choice

Chopped apple such as Fuji or Gala (toss with a bit of lemon juice to avoid turning brown)

Cranberries

Blue cheese or 1/2 inch cubes of cheddar

Walnuts

Red onion

Mango Blueberry Salad

(Pictured below)

Lettuce of your choice

Blueberries

Dried mango

Feta

Candied pecans

Green onions

Note: This combination was good, but I think it 

would have been better with fresh mango and dried blueberries instead.

Taco Salad; Two Ways

Taco Salad

one large bag tortilla chips
one pound ground beef prepared with taco seasoning pack
one cup cheddar cheese
7 pieces of chopped tomatoes
9 pieces of chopped onion
4 pieces of white lettuce...er...iceburg lettuce
1 small jar salsa
2 Tablespoons low fat sour cream (wouldn't want to be unhealthy by using the full fat stuff...meanwhile chips are the main ingredient of this entree....)
Serves 4

Just kidding! I couldn't resist starting off with this.

Unfortunately this is pretty close to the standard way of making taco salad. I suppose it's possible it never occurred to you that taco salad should be healthy. And no criticism to you if you actually prefer your taco salad this way. (Who doesn't love tons of chips?) But I think most of us would agree this is probably not the most healthy way it could be prepared. 

It's always my goal to make healthy food taste great too, so I give you not one, but TWO tasty and healthy ways to make taco salad: Taco Salad with Fresh Salsa and Taco Salad with Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette. The fresh salsa method requires more ingredients and has more of a restaurant-y flair, while the cilantro-lime vinaigrette method is cheaper and faster to prepare.

For both salads there are three things you have to have: lettuce, ground beef, and cheese. You then top your salad with either the fresh salsa or the cilantro-lime vinaigrette. Then you add any number of extra toppings of your choice, or whatever you simply have on hand. 

"But wait! Where are the chips?" you say.

Sorry guys; to be totally Nourishing Traditions approved there are no chips allowed. But that doesn't keep me from adding a few to my salad. If I am trying to lose weight or something I won't have any or I might just crumble two or three on top for flavor and crunch. Otherwise I usually have a handful with my meal. 

(Cheer up, you with the long face. Just think of all the money you will save by not having chips as the main ingredient! Good chips are expensive!)

Okay, on to our healthy taco salad. First you need to start with the basics:

The lettuce:

Lettuce needs to be the main part of the salad. And when I say lettuce, no; iceburg doesn't count. It probably isn't surprising just how much more nutritious romaine or leaf lettuce is than iceberg. Here are a few cool facts about romaine lettuce: it is a source of protein, calcium, omega-3 (for real!), and has more vitamin C than an orange. (If you need more convincing, here's a good article on the amazingness of romaine. 10 Surprising Nutrition Facts About Romaine Lettuce.)

I know iceburg is cheaper, but relatively speaking lettuce in general is not a high cost item for the volume. If you usually eat iceberg lettuce, choosing a darker green is an easy and inexpensive way to up the nutrition you are getting. I shop at Aldi and purchase their Tanimura and Antle Artisan Lettuce for just $1.99 for four small heads. I've seen this same brand of lettuce at Wal-Mart for $2.99, which is still a good deal. (Wal-Mart and your local grocery stores do of course have other options for good lettuce.)

The ground beef:

Next you have ground beef. If you really like the taco seasoning packs, there's nothing essentially wrong with them. I just think they don't have enough flavor and I always end up adding a bunch more spices. In generally I prefer to use my own unique seasonings and don't use premixed seasoning packets. In the long run you will end up saving money by not using the seasoning packets.

The cheese:

Finally there is the cheese. Cheddar is fine, or Colby Jack, but my personal favorite for taco salad is a Mexican blend.

These three items are the backbone to your taco salad. What you do from here will depend on what ingredients you have on hand on a particular day.

So here are the recipes:

This is my basic taco meat recipe I use for all of my Mexican American dishes.

Taco Meat

1 pound ground beef

1 onion, finely chopped, or 2 tablespoons dried minced onion

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 1/2 teaspoons cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons oregano

1 teaspoon chile powder

1/4 teaspoon chipote pepper

1 teaspoon minced garlic (about 3 cloves), or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

3/4 cup water

Place meat in a medium sized skillet. Turn the heat to medium. Break up the ground beef with a spoon or stiff spatula. Mix in the onions. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stir every 3-4 minutes until no pink is left (about 10 minutes). Drain excess fat, if necessary. (I use a metal spoon and scoop that grease into an empty tin can. When the fat is cool I throw away the can and the congealed fat.)

After the meat is fully cooked return to medium heat and add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Simmer until all the water has evaporated (about 10 minutes).

The salsa and guacamole recipes are easy to make but have excellent flavor. They are also great to use just as a dip for chips.

Fresh Salsa

1 to 1/4 cup finely chopped tomato (about 3 Roma tomatos)

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1/4 cup bell pepper, any color 

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (long stems removed)

1 clove garlic, minced

1/8 teaspoon each salt, freshly ground black pepper, cumin, and chipotle pepper

2 Tablespoons lime or lemon juice

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until serving.

Easy Guacamole

1 avocado, mashed

1 Tablespoon lime or lemon juice

A pinch each salt, cumin, and chipotle pepper

1 Tablespoon fresh salsa (above), optional

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until serving.

This is one of my favorite dressings It's also great over regular salad. 

Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

3-4 Tablespoons lime juice (about 2 limes)*

3/4 cup loosely packed cilantro lives, long stems removed

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 salt

1/4 pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

Blend together in a blender or food processor until cilantro leaves are finely chopped. Refrigerate until serving.

*Lemon juice can be substituted for the lime when you don't have any limes. Obviously this would make it cilantro-lemon vinaigrette, but the flavor is still great.

And this is how it's done:

Method One:

lettuce (about 1 1/2 to 2 cups chopped lettuce per person)

taco meat

cheese (about 1/4 cup per person)

fresh salsa

guacamole (optional)

Method Two:

lettuce (about 1 1/2 to 2 cups chopped lettuce per person)

taco meat

cheese (about 1/4 cup per person)

chopped tomatoes 

(halved grape tomatoes add a sophisticated flavor)

cilantro-lime vinaigrette

(Each method serves 4-6 people, depending on how many extra toppings you have).

Suggested Extra Toppings:

sour cream*

Greek yogurt (a great way to add extra protein to the meal)*

chopped bell peppers

sliced black olives

corn - canned or frozen

chopped onion - white, red, or green onions

Beans - I usually use pinto beans because they are what refried 

beans are made of so it gives the salad that same flavor. 

Black beans or kidney beans would also work well.

tortilla chips (these may go without saying :-)

My recent salad prepared according to Method One, with added pinto beans, sour cream, and blue corn chips.

The cool thing about taco salad is all you have to have for the meal is the 4 things mentioned in the two methods. Have fun and experiment with various combinations! This is a great high-protein/low-carb meal that is super healthy and Nourishing Traditions approved by simply not having chips.

*It's important that your dairy is full fat, not reduced fat or fat free. Our bodies need the fat in dairy to be able to properly digest all of the nutrients. Additionally, reduced fat products usually add corn syrup or other starches (carbs!) and artificial flavorings to try to make up for the poorer quality of taste. In a future post I will share more details about why full-fat dairy is the most healthy choice.

(I will be reposting each of these recipes in separate posts so people can find them more easily in the future.)

Search terms:

taco salad

low carb taco salad

healthy taco salad

taco salad with vinaigrette

fresh salsa

guacamole

Southwestern Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

Once upon a time the summer before college, I worked at a little Israeli restaurant in Minneapolis called The Little Tel-Aviv. All their food was amazing. (I am a huge Middle Eastern food fan after having been exposed to it by the many Lebanese people who lived in the Ivory Coast and Liberia to do business. I lived in these countries many years as my parents are missionaries and I have also done mission work in Africa as an adult. But I digress...)

One of the deli salads The Little Tel-Aviv served was called Rainbow Salad (if I recall correctly). It had sweet potatoes and some other vegetables that I can't quite remember (eggplant may have been one of them), and was in a tomato sauce/dressing. It was simply phenomenal. It was my favorite of all the food they served. Years passed and I (still!) have not been able to find a recipe for that amazing salad. (If you know of a recipe PLEASE leave the recipe, or a link to one, in the comments section!) But in my internet search for said amazing salad, I came across this gem; Southwestern Roasted Sweet Potato Salad. I saved this recipe in my ever-growing recipe collection on my computer, then one day recently, I pulled it out and made it.

It was everything I dreamed it would be.

It is hands down my favorite non-lettuce salad recipe. The tastes and textures blend together perfectly and the slow roasted sweet potatoes give an unexpected sweet flavor. It makes a great side dish, but can also be a vegetarian main course. And as if all these things were not amazing enough, the recipe is high protein/low carb AND Nourishing Traditions approved! It's not Israeli, but it turned out to be a wonderful sister recipe to the one I was searching for. (This recipe is adapted from one I found at Taste of the South Magazine online).

Southwestern Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

5-6 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes, to make 8 cups

3 Tablespoons melted coconut oil or olive oil

1 1/4 teaspoon salt (Kosher salt or flakey sea salt works best)

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 1/2 cups black beans (see my recipe here), or one 15.5 oz can, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion (about half a medium onion), or one large Carolina sweet onion (about 2/3 cup)

1 1/2 to 2 cups grape tomatoes

1 cup feta cheese (can be omitted if you can't have dairy or don't like feta)

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 - 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chili powder*

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss the sweet potatoes with the coconut oil. Sprinkle on the salt, pepper, cumin and oregano. Stir to coat. Spread the potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet with an edge. Bake for 45-60 minutes, checking after 30 minutes as some ovens heat differently (no need to stir). Bake until the edges start to brown. (The goal is to slow roast them to caramelized perfection.) Cool.

Now this is where it gets tough. You'll want to taste one of these suckers and when you do you'll find you can't stop snitching them. I literally make extra potatoes since I know that I'll eat too many before they make it into the salad!

These suckers have perfectly caramelized flavor.

Transfer the potatoes to a large serving bowl. Add the black beans, red onion, tomatoes, feta and cilantro.

In a small bowl combine the olive oil, lemon juice and chipotle pepper powder.  Poor over the salad. Stir gently to combine all the ingredients. 

Can be eaten right away, but it tastes best if it's had at least one hour to chill.

*Chipotle pepper powder is very important to this recipe. I found mine from McCormick in the spice isle at Wal-Mart. You can also order it online.

Preparation time: 30 minutes. Cook time: 45-60 minutes: Servings: 4-5

This salad goes well with grilled meat and a green salad. It also is a great vegetarian meal. I serve it for dinner as a side one night, then eat the leftovers for lunch the next day. As a side dish it serves 4-5, but for a main dish it is about 2-3 servings.