Tips for Making an Easy Arugula Salad
The idea for new and different salads in our salad bowls came from the constant use of iceberg lettuce in all of the salads we are served at restaurants.
We try to stay away from iceberg lettuce if at all possible and don't even purchase it anymore. Iceberg lettuce has hardly any nutrients in it being mostly water. When we eat salad, we want to know that we are actually benefiting from it. At restaurants we even ask for it to be replaced with healthier leaves like romaine, arugula or even baby greens.
Arugula is one leafy green vegetable that stands out as a rich source of many vitamins and minerals. Consider the difference between iceberg lettuce and arugula. Arugula contains about eight times the calcium, fives times the vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin K, and four times the iron as the same amount of iceberg lettuce. The choice is easy. Start with arugula for a healthier salad! (Live Strong)
Why would we ever eat iceberg lettuce again knowing the big difference this choice is making on our bodies?
Cook Time
Ingredients
- 4 cups arugula leaves
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 large avocado
- pinch salt and pepper
Instructions
- Cut all of your cherry tomatoes in half.
- Toss your arugula leaves, cherry tomato halves, and pine nuts in one large bowl. Toss to mix.
- In a smaller bowl, whisk your olive oil, rice vinegar, salt and pepper, and Parmesan cheese together. Mix well.
- Pour your salad dressing over the top of your salad and toss to coat everything evenly.
- Slice your avocado.
- To do this, cut down one side of your avocado with a knife down to the seed.
- Twist the avocado all the way around with your knife still inserted, cutting the entire avocado in half.
- Set the knife down and twist both sides to free the two halves from eachother. In order to remove your avocado seed without destroying the meat of the fruit, I have two solutions. 1) Firmly plant with blade of your knife into the seed with some force. When it is stable, twist the knife and the seed with it an the seed should come free.
- If this doesn't work, then 2) press the tip of the knife into one side of the seed down by the meat of the fruit and, holding the avocado firmly with one hand, push the seed away from you and it should pop right out.
- Please be careful and point the knife and the popping out seed away from people and yourself, preferably down into the sink.
- Once the seed is free, with the fruit still in it's skin, gently cut slices down into the fruit without puncturing the skin below.
- Use a large spoon to scoop the meat out of it's skin and there you go! Don't worry if this is strange at first. It definitely takes practice.
- Garnish your salads in their bowls with avocado slices.
Nutritional Information
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Serving size: 1 cup of salad | |
| Calories | 262 |
| Calories from Fat | 216 |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Fat 24 g | 37% |
| Carbohydrates 10 g | 3% |
| Fiber 6 g | 24% |
| Protein 7 g | 14% |
| Cholesterol 6 mg | 2% |
| Sodium 400 mg | 17% |
| * The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA. | |
Yummy! Yummy! We eat a lot of salads over here, usually using baby greens with all of the colors. It's nice though to have alternates to spice things up a little bit.
Arugula definitely has it's own taste and makes us feel like we are having something new and unique in our salad bowls.
Arugula contains beta carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin, all of which are being studied for their role as antioxidants or in the prevention of diseases like cancer and macular degeneration. Eating leafy greens like arugula, spinach, beet greens, Swiss chard and kale is a great way to make sure you get a healthy range of carotenoids. (Health Benefits)
Stay with us to see a variety of salad options, instead of just continuing to eat iceberg. Coming up, you'll get my recipe for Fennel and Watercress Salad, but don't forget all of the other wonderful options: butterhead, summercrisp, stem lettuce, broccoli rabe, romaine, kale, collards, turnip greens, swiss chard, spinach, mustard greens, and cabbage. (WebMD)
Quick Poll
WOuld you be willing to try some alternative leaves in your salads for some extra vitamins and nutrients?
© 2013 Victoria Van Ness
