You don’t need to be hard core wheatgrass chugging health nut to enjoy this zesty kale salad with a just a hint of spice. When it comes to dark green salads, I usually just watch other people eat them and look to see if I can find some more exciting and agreeable food to indulge in. When Rod Rotondi came into our studio and made us this kale salad, I was a little hesitant. I slowly sunk my fork into just a small corner leaf, expecting at best for it to be boring and flavorless. Fortunetly I was pleasantly surprised and it was both fresh and delicious, without being overpowering. It hasn’t turned me into a green leaf eater, don’t get me wrong. In fact, I think the last time I had a kale salad was that day. I would certainly eat it again though, it’s just not the first type of dish that comes to mind when I think of what to eat.
Rod Rotondi is an organic raw food chef who own’s Leaf Cuisine, a California based organic raw cafe that has expanded to 3 locations throughout Los Angeles. Just recently their food has made it’s way into Whole Foods and other health food stores in Los Angeles. Their cuisine is obviously a big hit with the health conscious crowd in LA. They feature very simple and fresh fast health food. Their food is not rich and indulgent and generally not bursting with flavorful seasonings or pungent condiments. It is however fresh and light and of course full of plenty of leafs, with just enough flavor to make it pleasantly edible, all while leaving you glowing and satiated and like you did something good for yourself to make up for all the debauchery. The salads are large and colorful and full of live nutrient packed sprouts and the price range is reasonable. Practical, healthy and functional spa type cuisine is how I would describe it.
If you’re like me and need some practical solutions for making nutritious dark bitter greens palatable enough to want to go for seconds, try this recipe! Right now!” – Indulge
This Salad Features the best of the farmers market fresh tomatoes and herbs. It is very simple, beautiful and easy to make. It takes me only about 5-10 minutes to make, and I’m pretty slow. I always look forward to the season when there is plenty of colorful varieties of heirloom tomatoes at the market.
They are usually available in the late summer through the fall. Try to follow the seasons and buy what is currently available in your local area. This is still a great simple salad with any type of tomatoes, but the heirloom pineapple tomatoes just burst with so much succulent flavor and richness. If you can find them when they’re in season it’s so worth it. All of the heirloom tomato varieties are excellent, but the pineapple always seems to be my favorite. Yellow bell peppers are also very sweet and mild and go well with this mix. They look lovely too. I usually buy a pre-mix of organic baby greens at the market. They include greens like baby chard, kale, romaine, spinach, arugula, etc. Most stores carry organic garden mixes of baby greens as well. Macadamia nut oil is also becoming more and more popular and easy to find. Continue Reading / See Additional Photos
Asian Carrot Avocado Salad and Dressing(vegan, raw) Recipe by Julie Morris
Julie Morris is one of our contributing authors and now she has started making her own food videos. So, we decided it would actually be nice to see some of the writers, so we have posting this very entertaining and beautiful recipe video for an Asian Carrot Avocado Salad with a dressing.
Julie decided to make this salad, to break away from a purely green salad, adding some excitement to her normal eating routine. This is a very quick recipe anyone can make.
“This was a beautiful and refreshingly sweet salad, perfect for a light lunch. The mixture of the fresh fruit and greens together with a sweet and tangy creamy dressing was a great combination. I don’t usually eat poppy seeds, but it worked rather well with this dish and added a nice crunch. It’s important to remember that poppy seeds contain opiates like morphine and codeine, although the cultivated western poppy seeds contain little opium if any. I’m sure they’re safe in small quantities as a garnish as they are usually used.” – Indulge
This really is one of the best combinations ever. Simple, elegant, and sensuous. Apparently there are over 400 varieties of mango worldwide. My favorite, from the three or four varieties I’ve tried, is the champagne mango. I’m seriously considering a trip to India just to sample mangos.
This salad is why I trek (well really I drive) 30 miles to the Thai/Vietnamese market on the north side of Chicago to get my supply of green papaya. Green papaya, as well as green mango, is used in abundance in Asian food preparation. The dressing for the salad is both sweet and spicy which I find very addictive!
Green Papaya is known to have an abundance of the enzyme Papain that breaks down protein which in turn aids digestion. As the fruit ripens, the enzyme content decreases, so you are doing your body good by eating the unripe fruit.
The Thai/Vietnamese markets are also a great place to pick up fresh bean sprouts, long beans, and tamarind. You can also pick up a relatively cheap mortar and pestle to make it the traditional way.
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