{"id":7430,"date":"2019-07-10T05:44:26","date_gmt":"2019-07-10T09:44:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eatrightpa.org\/?p=7430"},"modified":"2021-10-30T03:37:33","modified_gmt":"2021-10-30T03:37:33","slug":"building-a-better-salad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/2019\/07\/10\/building-a-better-salad\/","title":{"rendered":"Building a Better Salad"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-7469\" src=\"http:\/\/dev.eatrightpa.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Copy-of-Build-a-Better-Salad-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p><b>By: Laura Ali, MS, RDN, LDN<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Salads can really hit the spot on a hot summer day.\u00a0 Light and delicious, they are seemingly a nutritious choice as well.\u00a0 But if you aren\u2019t careful, they can pack in lots of extra calories and few nutrients.\u00a0 It just requires a little planning and thought to make a satisfying and healthy summer salad.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Think about building a salad like you are building a house. (My father is an architect, so bear with me here!)\u00a0 You need a strong foundation, supportive floors and walls and plenty of decoration!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Start with a strong foundation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Skip the iceberg lettuce and look for deep colored green and red lettuces. Baby spinach, kale, arugula or spring mixes are usually readily available and you can augment those with red and green leaf lettuce, romaine or red cabbage.\u00a0 In addition to being full of color and flavor and they rich in fiber, vitamins A and C; minerals like calcium and iron are a good source of antioxidants and protective phytonutrients. They provide a great foundation to build upon.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Add the floors:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Start with proteins like beans, lean meats, chicken, fish, or tofu.\u00a0 2 \u2013 3 oz. of meat (or the size of a deck of cards), is the perfect amount to be filling and satisfying.\u00a0 Think of protein as adding strength and stamina. Hearty grains like faro, bulgur or even rice add extra fiber and B vitamins for energy.\u00a0 Top it with lots of colorful vegetables like peppers, broccoli, beets, avocado, red cabbage and carrots for decoration. These nutrient-rich additions will add vitamins, minerals and more protective phytonutrients. Fresh or canned fruit (juice or water packed) or dried fruit will add some \u201cwall coloring\u201d to dress it up a bit.\u00a0 If you are looking for a little crunch, add a few nutrient-rich nuts or seeds and skip the croutons.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Head to the attic:\u00a0 <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finish off with a little flavorful dressing.\u00a0 The dressing adds more than just flavor to a salad so don\u2019t skip it!\u00a0 A number of small studies have shown that including a little oil-based salad dressing increases the absorption of the carotenoids and phytochemicals from the vegetables in the salad. But, a little goes a long way.\u00a0 Just like you don\u2019t want to overload your attic with extra stuff, you don\u2019t want to overload your salad either! 1-2 Tbsp. is just enough to get the nutritional benefits and flavor. Just remember to toss it well before serving to fully distribute the dressing.\u00a0 You\u2019ll use less than just adding it to the top.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Redecorate every season:\u00a0 <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the fun part! While salads are perfect for a hot summer day, they can also be delicious in the fall and winter. Keep the base the same but change the supporting elements by looking for vegetables and fruits that are in season.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Have fun and be creative!\u00a0 Salads can be a delicious and nutritious addition to your lunch or dinner.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"241\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-5282\" src=\"http:\/\/dev.eatrightpa.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/laura-241x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Laura Ali, MS, RDN, LDN is <\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a <\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">food and nutrition communications professional, recipe developer and brand ambassador for the StarKist Co. <\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She loves learning about food, exploring how food has shaped our culture, and teaching people how to enjoy the food they eat.\u00a0On weekends she can be found exploring local food shops, wineries, and walking trails with her husband.\u00a0 You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter @LauraAli_RD or her website: www.onthekitchenshelf.com<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By: Laura Ali, MS, RDN, LDN Salads can really hit the spot on a hot summer day.\u00a0 Light and delicious, they are seemingly a nutritious choice as well.\u00a0 But if you aren\u2019t careful, they can pack in lots of extra calories and few nutrients.\u00a0 It just requires a little planning and thought to make a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":7469,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7430"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7430\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10353,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7430\/revisions\/10353"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.eatrightpa.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}