Let’s Eat: Make fresh produce a summertime staple
By Heidi Sutton
Summer brings sunshine-filled days along with the season’s bounty of some of the most delicious produce.
Now is the time to enjoy those in-season fruits and vegetables when they are at the peak of freshness in recipes like Grilled Sweetpotato and Blueberry Salad that offers all the tastes of the season with greens, fresh blueberries, walnuts and blue cheese.
Or try this Avocado Superfood Salad, which combines kale, spinach, walnuts, blueberries, sweet potato, tomatoes and creamy avocados into a tasty, colorful and healthy lunch or dinner.
Grilled Sweetpotato and Blueberry Salad: SEE VIDEO HERE
Recipe courtesy of Culinary.net
YIELD: Makes 4 servings
INGREDIENTS:
3 medium sweetpotatoes peeled and sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt to taste
pepper to taste
4 cups spring salad mix
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
lemon wedges for garnish (optional)
Lemon Honey Vinaigrette:
6 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 1/2 tablespoons honey
salt to taste
pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
To make lemon honey vinaigrette: In bowl, mix olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and honey. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Preheat grill to medium heat. Drizzle sweetpotatoes with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill sliced sweetpotatoes on each side about 5 minutes, or until sweetpotatoes are tender and slightly charred. Remove from grill and let cool.
To arrange salad, spread spring salad mix onto large platter and top with grilled sweetpotatoes, blueberries, walnuts and blue cheese crumbles.
Top with lemon honey vinaigrette and garnish with lemon wedges, if desired.
Avocado Superfood Salad
Recipe courtesy of Family Features
YIELD: Makes 4 servings
INGREDIENTS:
8 cups kale or baby spinach leaves
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or to taste, divided
1 cup walnuts
1 cup blueberries
1 cup diced cooked sweet potato
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
2 large ripe, fresh California Avocados seeded, peeled and sliced horizontally
vinaigrette dressing for serving
DIRECTIONS:
Slice kale or spinach into fine shreds and place in mixing bowl. With clean hands, massage 1 tablespoon olive oil into shredded greens. Place on serving platter or individual plates and sprinkle with a little salt.
In medium skillet over medium heat, heat remaining oil. Add walnuts and stir to coat. Toast 2-5 minutes, stirring frequently, being careful not to burn walnuts. Remove from pan and let cool slightly. Arrange blueberries, sweet potatoes, grape tomatoes and avocado slices on top of kale and spinach, leaving space for walnuts. Add walnuts to salad and sprinkle with remaining salt. Serve with vinaigrette dressing.
