Hello lovelies,
Coming at you today with a new recipe for a deliciously vibrant Bitter Sweet Salad using Radicchio, Apple and Mango amongst other ingredients… Yesterday, as I was thinking of the best way to consume this beautiful bitter leafy “green”, I immediately imagined it combined with some sweet ingredients to bring out its bitter flavour even more. Eating it raw in a salad form would be the next best thing to do so I could preserve all of the health benefits of the heat-sensitive compounds contained in this vegetable. Therefore, a Bitter Sweet Salad it would become! And so I whipped up this super easy and yummy salad. Today I want to share the recipe with you all to show you that once again healthy, nutritious and delicious does not need to be complicated. Just let your senses guide you.
But before I share this easy recipe, let me tell you briefly about the health benefits of this under-appreciated leafy vegetable:
Health Benefits of Radicchio:
Radicchio is a leafy vegetable of the Chicory family, that ressembles in taste the Belgian endives (yummy!) and a red cabbage in its appearance. It has a bitter and spicy taste that goes wonderfully well with other sweet and/or salty flavours. Its bitter taste comes from its lactucopicrin component, which naturally has an analgesic and sedative effect on the central nervous system. Because of its deep wine-red color, radicchio is rich in phenolic flavonoid antioxidants (such as zea-xanthin and lutein), which are great to help fight off free radicals damage in the body and also have an anti-inflammatory effect. Radicchio is also rich in B-complex vitamins (B1, B5, B3 & B6), which are excellent for energy production and essential for fat and protein metabolism. Finally, radicchio is a great source of minerals, such as manganese, copper, zinc, iron and potassium. All of which being essential components for your skin, digestive and overall body’s health.
Please keep in mind, as a rule of thumb, that any vegetable that has a bitter taste to it is also excellent for your liver because it will help in its detoxification pathways. In addition, it will also cleanse your blood of toxins and will promote a healthy digestion. So try to include them a little bit more (raw!) in your salads or smoothies. Your body will thank you for it.
Now for this recipe.
Bitter Sweet Radicchio Salad:
Ingredients:
- 2-3 cups of mixed leafy greens (feel free to use any leafy greens of your choice)
- 1 cup of radicchio (or Belgian endives), roughly chopped
- 1-2 Tbsp of freshly chopped cilantro (aka coriander)
- 1/2 mango, diced
- 1 apple, cored and diced
- 1 Tbsp of raisins (or dried cranberries)
- 2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 lemon, freshly squeezed juice (or 1.5 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar)
- Sea salt & pepper to taste
- Optional: some slivered almonds would be the perfect crunchy addition to this salad.
Instructions:
Toss all of the ingredients into a big salad bowl and voila! You have yourself a tasty and nutritious salad. The perfect way to start a meal, allowing your body to get enough beautifying enzymes right before your meal.
Enjoy and bon appétit!
– Sarah.
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