Arugula - Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products

6 Ways You Might Be Sabotaging Your Salad

Vinnie Stevens — Tue, 09 May 2023 09:30:00 +0000

Salads aren’t the same as ice cream, but plenty of people eat them on a regular basis. In fact, a recent poll of 2,000 U.S. adults reported that 62% of the people eat salads four times per week. If that is the case, how do you explain the staggering rates of obesity in America? Well, the unfortunate reality is that people may be sabotaging their salads without knowing it.

A salad should be a large bowl of fresh, raw vegetables and leafy greens. You can also add fresh fruit, legumes, sprouts, quinoa, and nuts and seeds to enhance your salads. These ingredients make for a terrific, healthy salad, but it’s very easy to go astray and detract from a salad’s health benefits. Drowning your salad in store bought dressing, overdoing the carbs, and forgetting about healthy protein, among other missteps, can turn a nutritious bowl into a caloric nightmare.

Whether you order out or make your own, be mindful of the following ways you may be sabotaging your salad.

Drowning It In Dressing

Here’s the thing about dressings…they can be healthy, especially if you make them yourself. Ideally, you want a dressing that is not too light, but not too heavy, either. The dressing can drastically increase the calories of your salad because most store bought dressings contain excess fat, dairy products, sodium, and processed ingredients. You don’t want your salad to turn into a 2,000-calorie meal. Balsamic, apple cider, and red wine vinegars are all great to mix with olive oil, avocado oil, or grape seed oil. Choose your favorite seasonings and get after it! Be sure to comb through our salads and dressings section here for inspiration.

Going Crazy With The Croutons

Croutons, quite simply, are very high in saturated fat, sodium, and refined carbohydrates. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), just a half-ounce of croutons contains 99 milligrams (mg) of sodium and 10 grams (g) of carbs. While there are healthier versions of croutons, most of the available choices are unhealthy. Rather than cover your salad in processed bread cubes, add a satisfying crunch to your salad with nuts or seeds, chickpeas, kale chips, or dried seaweed.

Using Light Greens

We aren’t talking about weight, we’re talking about color. A lot of people use iceberg lettuce, which isn’t the unhealthiest thing you can eat, but it pales in comparison to darker leafy greens like spinach, kale, romaine lettuce, and arugula. For example, one cup of spinach provides 30 mg of calcium and .8 mg of iron, whereas a cup of iceberg lettuce only offers 10.3 mg of calcium and .2 mg of iron. Dark leafy greens are naturally rich in fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Many reports and studies confirm that these greens contain health properties that can help combat heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and can improve gut health. Consider abandoning the lighter leaves and focus on darker, richer greens. Plus, using different greens helps change up your salad, which works to keep your taste buds interested.

Forgetting Protein

If a salad is going to be your meal, you need to make it substantial. While you can have a large bowl of different fruits and vegetables, you may want to include additional sources of protein. A salad doesn’t have to be a wimpy afterthought! When people hear the word “protein,” they tend to associate it with poultry, meat, chicken, fish, or eggs. If you don’t want to include animal products, there are many vegan protein sources to choose from. Nuts, seeds, legumes, and whole grains all offer protein and other nutrients that help increase feelings of fullness. Don’t be afraid to put nuts or avocado in your salad because you think it will increase the calories too much. All those store bought dressings and croutons do the exact same thing in a much unhealthier way.

Packaged Dressings

Store bought and packaged salad dressings, which can come in bagged salads, are very convenient, but they contain a lot of problematic ingredients. These dressings can contain high amounts of sodium, saturated fat, and artificial additives. Additionally, these dressings can be sneaky sources of added sugars. Some store bought dressings use low-quality oils that aren’t as healthy as olive oil or avocado oil. Soybean oil, which is the common oil in store bought dressings, was linked to an increased risk of heart disease in a 2018 study. Olive oil, on the other hand, works to encourage healthier heart function.

Your Salad Is Boring

If you eat the same salad every single time, you will tire of it quickly. Not only is mixing up your ingredients a great way to get a diverse mix of nutrients, but it also changes up the flavors. A salad of kale, pistachios, apples, blueberries, and sunflower seeds is much different than a salad of arugula, pears, and dried figs. If you enjoy a certain leafy green or a few specific ingredients, you can carry them over from salad to salad. Bell peppers, nuts, dried fruit, and in season produce can take your salads to the next level. And don’t forget about different herbs!

The post 6 Ways You Might Be Sabotaging Your Salad appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

Winter Blood Orange Salad

Vinnie Stevens — Sat, 24 Dec 2022 18:16:00 +0000

When you pass by blood oranges in the grocery store during the winter, it is very difficult to resist them. They exhibit a vibrant ruby flesh and a surprisingly sweet flavor. Many food manufacturers use them to flavor everything from sparking water and beer to salad dressings. This recipe uses the blood orange in two ways: freshly sliced in the salad and whisked into an oil-free vinaigrette.

The peppery arugula and mild spinach are the perfect backdrop for the zesty citrus slices that go into the salad. Plus, the creamy avocado not only provides another layer of texture, but also a lot of omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, and potassium. When you slice the avocado, try your best to slice them thinly lengthwise, as opposed to cubing them. The long slivers of avocado are perfect when you stab your salad, because you get a sliver of avocado with a slice of orange and greens. That is the perfect bite!

What makes this winter blood orange salad healthy? Can we say everything? Because that is the real truth. Blood oranges are particularly rich in vitamins A & C, which work to encourage healthy immune function and improve the appearance of your skin. The omega-3s in avocados may regulate blood sugar, blood pressure, and reduce the risk of heart disease. Finally, the greens are naturally rich in iron, magnesium, folate, and vitamin K, making this salad a true nutrient-dense recipe!

The post Winter Blood Orange Salad appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

8 Apple Recipes To Make This Fall

Vinnie Stevens — Tue, 18 Oct 2022 18:06:00 +0000

Although the famous saying is, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away,” many people take apples for granted. They are available year round, so why are they so special during fall? Depending on the variety, of which there are more than 2,500, apple season ranges from late July through early November. Gala, McIntosh, and Macoun varieties are ready in September, while other varieties like Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Fuji are ripe in October.

Nutrition Facts

On average, a medium apple contains 72 calories, three grams of fiber, and 11% of your recommended daily intake (RDI) of vitamin C. Apples are also rich in a variety of flavonoids, including quercetin and phloridzin. Through various studies, researchers identified that these plant compounds help fight against heart disease and certain types of cancer. Apples are also rich in beta-carotene, which is a powerful antioxidant that is primarily concentrated in apple peels. Finally, apples contain phytochemicals that give them their anti-inflammatory and cholesterol-lowering properties. That makes these fall fruits an excellent on-the-go snack or addition to recipes.

Nothing beats a crisp apple that bursts with juicy flavor, especially if you can pick it fresh from an apple orchard during fall. But apples are so much more than just a healthy snack! Use them in the following eight recipes and let us know how you like them in the comments below.

Apple Cinnamon Smoothie For Fall

Start a busy fall morning with this apple cinnamon smoothie, which is packed with protein, healthy fats, fiber, and tons of flavor.