Perfect for picnics, warm summer days, and to feel extra fresh!
This summer heat has really been kicking in! Lately, I have been too warm to cook hot food and use the stove or oven. Preparing fresh and juicy salads have been the trick to staying cool and leaving my body feeling rejuvenated and ready to tackle the rest of the day!
In light of "June's Gift" post, I thought I would share a colorful, leafless salad encompassing all those summer vegetables! Typically, salads are not my favorite main course meal, but something about these raw veggies in the heat.... who am I? lol
PLUS, raw vegetables, for the most part, are amazing for your body. Heating up most vegetables takes away some of their nutritional values, decreases the enzymes ingested, and lessens the body's mineral absorption. Although this does not apply to every vegetable, it is a great way to clean out the digestion system and get rid of excess toxins.
Another benefit of this salad is that it includes a wide array of veggies. Adding lots of color to your diet is highly important, for each of the colors contain benefits and phytonutrients important for the body. For example, reds tend to decrease cardiovascular problems and diabetic risk, oranges/yellows are packed with vitamin C and great for maintaining eye and skin health, greens are full of antioxidants and detoxify the body, and blues/purples contain anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties.
It is great to keep this in mind when trying to maintain a balanced diet. Colorful plates are not only aesthetic, they keep your body functioning at a more optimal state!
Ingredients: Serves 2
- 2 Large Carrots
- 1 Cucumber
- 2 Celery Stalks
- 1 Tomato (or a handful of cherry tomatoes)
- 1 Avocado
- 5 small Radishes
- 1 Red Onion
- bundle of Parsley (around 20g)
- Sunflower seeds
- Pumpkin seeds
- Pine nuts
(About 50g total between all 3 seeds & nuts)
** I buy a bunch of seeds and put them together into a mason jar to grab whenever my meal needs some flair **
- 1 1/2 Lemons
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions:
Peel the carrots and cucumber
Dice all the carrots, cucumber, celery, radishes, tomato, avocado, red onion and parsley. Then add into a serving bowl
Juice the lemon and add on top of the cut veggies
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Add Sunflower seeds, Pumpkin seeds, and Pine nuts into mixture
Drizzle olive oil generously into the serving bowl
Serve immediately and enjoy! :)
This Mediterranean-styled salad is perfect as any starter, main-course, or side! Try it out and get that lasting fresh feeling this salad leaves you with!
Let me know how your body responded to the plethora of summer ingredients on @being.soulfull on Instagram or email me with your results!
As summer has just officially begun, this is one of many salads I plan on sharing! Keep your eyes peeled for weekly Wednesday posts. Thank you for your support!
#summer #saladseason #veganrecipes #plantbased #easyrecipe #cleancooking #colorfuldiet #rawfood #balanceddiet #soulfull
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