If you are on a quest to feeling like a million bucks without breaking the bank or experiencing blend, not-much-benefits in it kind of salad you are in luck!

Let’s face it. Salads are not always a food we crave even though they are super healthy and help you get the daily dose of vegetables required it can get challenging to eat a salad every day.

I’ve learned that the key to eating healthy foods, not only salads is to be creative and to eat the foods that appeal to you and that you love.   Monotony will sabotage any life style change you are trying to achieve no matter what.   That’s why, I am going to show you how to make salads fun and deliciously addicting while healing and nourishing your body.

See, this is not your average salad. This deliciousness is tasty and full of enzymes and probiotics, plus the toppings that make it fun. I can almost say that you’ll never look at a salad the same way.  Yes, you have heard this before, but you have not felt “that way” before.

See what’s in the background of that picture?  A glass of homemade Kombucha.  I drink one with most meals these days, and was the base to the vinaigrette. Why you ask? I use that instead of vinegar sometimes, because {that is a where a large concentration of good-for-your cells and gut enzymes and probiotics come from}.

But what is Kombucha Anyway?

If you drink or have heard of Kombucha, you know that it is a natural probiotic tea that will seduce your taste buds like never before, especially if you like a combination of sweet, salty, tangy, not too vinegary type of dressing.

Here is what well known Kombucha connoisseurs have to say:

Jessica and Eric Childs from Kombucha Brooklyn~

Through the power of fermentation, regular tea is transformed into a nutritionally alive drink that nourishes your body with compounds that detoxify, energize, support your immune system, streamline your digestive system, clarify your skin, prevent disease and elevate your mood.

Now that is what I love about Kombucha. It is a live food that has all of those benefits. What is not to like? Ahh heaven!!!

Ok now let’s get back to another key ingredient because I am going to walk the talk about this salad being filled with probiotic goodness:

Featured Ingredient: Lacto-fermented beets

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Katalin Brown, a certified GAPS (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) practitioner and a lifelong lover of cultured foods says:

Lacto-fermentation is the art and science of crafting cultured foods, such as kombucha, kefir, sauerkraut, pickles, and kimchi. Our ancestors knew the value of fermented foods, but with the advent of pasteurization and refrigeration the popularity of fermented foods has fallen away. But lacto-fermentation is making a big comeback. Fermented foods are loaded with live bacteria and enzymes that boost the immune system and promote intestinal wellness. Acetylcholine, a product of fermentation, helps to stimulate peristalsis (the movement of food through the intestine), improves blood circulation, prevents constipation, and helps crank up gastric juices when they are insufficient and down-regulates them when there is too much. For people coping with diabetes, fermented foods make no demands on the pancreas because sugars are already broken down. [2]

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For more information about Gut and Psychology Syndrome and the benefits of fermented foods, visit Katalin’s GAPS Ontario website here.

While doing further research I found Jenny from Nourished Kitchen a well known and respected blogger in the world of real traditional foods to say about fermentation that emphasizes on the benefits of fermentation as well:

Fermentation extends the life of foods like beets; as beneficial bacteria consume the sugars naturally present in beets and other foods, they produce lactic and acetic acid which, like vinegar in modern pickles, preserves the beets for long-term storage.  As an adjunct benefit, those same bacteria also produce vitamins, particularly folate and vitamin K2, and help to populate the gut with microbes that can boost the immune system. [1]

As you can see, culture foods are one of your best weapons to prevent disease and keep your gut healthy!

Now, I made my Lacto-Fermented beets based on this fantastic recipe by Meg Cotner from Harmonious Belly.  I have seen many recipes but what I loved about Meg recipe is that is basic, easy to make and the fact that like me, she doesn’t peel or scrub the beets too much.  Of course, if they are organic. If they aren’t it is ok, just do the vinegar/water soaking method and then peel or clean them.  Here is what Meg says:

Prepare your beets – rinse them off to get rid of dirt but don’t scrub the outside or peel the beets.  There are microorganisms living on the outside of the beets (and other vegetables, too), that you want to retain to help with the whole fermentation process.

As usual, the ingredients listed in this healing salad recipe are suggestions (I know you’ll swap something for whatever is on hand anyway. For example, I have made this recipe with cut up beets and I add some honey and allspice to the brine. Yum!

I feel that the magic of a good salad is the combination of the salad greens, and vegetables that YOU absolutely love, plus a scrumptious dressing to live for. Oh yes, don’t forget to be adventurous and try something new at least once.

Now let’s get to the recipe:

As you can see I have no problem mixing healing foods that make my taste buds happy, and so can you.  If you find some of the ingredients unappealing for you, simply swap or leave out an ingredient and voila!

I hope this probiotic charged healing salad makes it to your list of weekly foods. I am sure it will, but the best thing yet is the amazing benefits it will bring to your gut and overall health.

Now, how about YOU tell me. What is your favorite salad and salad ingredients?  Have you ever used yogurt in your dressing, let alone Kombucha?  I’d love to hear about your experiences in the comments below.

In the mood for a healthy warm comforting meal? Try my   healthy “Arroz” con pollo or my Gluten-free Cauliflower Rice.

References

http://nourishedkitchen.com/fermented-beets/ [1]