Integrative Nutrition Recipes

With spring right around the corner, berries are starting to make their appearance in stores. While harvesting your own berries may still be a few months away, there are some great berries available now and you shouldn’t pass them up. Mangos are easy to find at this time of year too. A juicy mango that you can smell from across the room…that will get your mouth watering! Spring also means the arrival of fresh garden lettuce. Farmers markets and many grocery stores will be carrying some local greens to make your perfect salad and that is exactly what we will be making with this recipe. It is time for blueberries, it is time for mangos and it is always time for salad!

Goodbye to the citrus fruit of winter and welcome berries, one of the best signs of warm weather to come. Who doesn’t love the antioxidants that those little blueberries are packed with? In fact, blueberries are one of the highest antioxidant foods in the world, containing resveratrol, lutein, vitamin K, vitamin C, manganese…the list goes on! Rather than throwing a handful of berries onto the salad, this recipe utilizes the power packed fruit in an easy vinaigrette. You can make the vinaigrette a few days early and keep it for up to a week – it goes great on almost any salad!

Mangos are also good for your body (plus great on your taste buds) and while they may not have as many antioxidant compounds as a blueberries, they are known to help with eye health, lowering cholesterol, and may even be beneficial to those with diabetes. While mangos are just becoming ripe and readily available in the spring, they will continue to be attainable all summer as well. So keep this fruit in your proverbial back pocket whenever you need a recipe boost.

And what is a salad without some fresh mixed greens? Lettuce is one of the first crops to pop out of the ground when spring arrives. Grab some fresh lettuce at a farm stand or from a friend to help this salad taste even more like spring.

With the first signs of spring and summer in the bowl, we’ll also give a farewell nod to winter with toasted pecans and a little dairy with some fresh feta cheese to top off the salad. The result is a perfect healthy celebration of the transition from winter to spring all in one bowl!

Mango Blueberry Spring Salad (2 servings)

4 cups mixed salad greens

1 ripe mango, diced

1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans

1/2 cup fresh Feta crumbles

1/4 cup Blueberry Vinaigrette

Pinch of salt

Pinch of pepper

Directions:

1. Divide the lettuce into two large bowls.
2. Sprinkle the diced mango between the two salad bowls so each bowl has about half a mango.
3. Divide the chopped pecans and feta between the two salad bowls. Drizzle each salad with the blueberry vinaigrette.
4. Sprinkle the salt and pepper on and serve immediately.

Blueberry Vinaigrette (1 cup)

1/2 cup blueberries

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon honey (optional)

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Use as dressing on Mango Blueberry Spring Salad or store refrigerated for up to one week.

Recipe Notes:

• This recipe also works well with strawberries rather than blueberries, but expect a brownish dressing.
• Baby spinach is a great alternative to mixed salad greens.
• To make this recipe dairy free, omit the feta and try adding croutons instead.

 

Integrative Nutrition is the world’s largest nutrition school and Health Coach Training Program. Through our innovative, one-year online course, students learn the principles of health coaching, business skills, and over 100 different dietary theories with lectures by the world’s leading experts.