We might as well call this raw foods salad: Superfood Kitchen Sink.
Truly, it contains ALL the good stuff – all the superfoods – all the super tasting foods, all the super feeling foods, and all the super powerful foods!
Superfoods are foods — mostly plant-based but also some fish and dairy — that are thought to be nutritionally dense and thus good for one’s health. Blueberries, salmon, kale and acai are just a few examples of foods that have garnered the “superfood” label. However, there are no set criteria for determining what is and what is not a superfood, according to the American Heart Association. “Superfoods don’t have their own food group,” said Despina Hyde, a registered dietician with the weight management program at New York University’s Langone Medical Center. “As a dietician, I think ‘superfood’ is more of a marketing term for foods that have health benefits.”
Superfoods contain a variety of nutrients, such as antioxidants, which are thought to ward off cancer. They also have healthy fats, thought to prevent heart disease; fiber, thought to prevent diabetes and digestive problems; and phytochemicals — the chemicals in plants responsible for deep colors and smells, which can have numerous health benefits. Consuming foods that are packed with nutrients (as many so-called superfoods are) is certainly a good idea, Hyde told Live Science. But the key to a healthy diet is to consume a variety of nutritious foods in the right quantities, she added.
On this particular day, my “kitchen sink” was a bounty of kale, cabbage, a few Brussels sprouts, Meyer lemon and olive oil, pepitas, dried cranberries, fresh blueberries, cashews, and a touch of Blueberry Stilton cheese. WOWZA!
Blueberry Kale Cashew Cabbage Salad
2 cups raw kale, washed, trimmed, and chopped into 1″ pieces
1 cup raw cabbage, thinly sliced
1 cup raw Brussels sprouts, chopped
2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbs. fresh Meyer lemon juice
sea salt and pepper
1 cup fresh blueberries
3/4 cup raw cashews
1/4 cup raw pepitas
1/4 cup dried cranberries
2 oz. Blueberry Stilton cheese (optional)
In a large bowl, mix together the kale, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and olive oil and lemon juice. Massage the veggies well with the oil, until nice and SOFT. This helps to make the veggies more digestible.
Season with salt and pepper and massage again for a few minutes.
Toss in the blueberries, nuts and seeds, and cranberries, and top with cheese, if desired.
Bask and bathe in the superfood goodness.
This may well be my most favorite thing on earth at this moment!
