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Black Registered Dietitian Nutritionists | Intuitive Eating Dietitians

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    Roasted Chickpea Kale Salad

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    I am the queen of finely chopping things up. This salad is just that. A whole bunch of really great ingredients. Finely chopped. And mixed together. What more could you ask for?  This allows for a great blend of flavors and textures. I’ve made this salad so many times for friends, and it’s always a hit. Let’s get to chopping!

    We’re starting this dish off by roasting up our chickpeas.  Drizzle the chickpeas with olive oil and then toss with paprika and cayenne.  These spices are known as anti-inflammatory spices, so they do great things for your bod while contributing mouthwatering flavor!  Next, you’ll bake the chickpeas for 30-35 minutes until crispy and brown.  While that bakes, take all your other finely chopped ingredients and mix together.  This will be your kale, onion, sun dried tomatoes, and walnuts. Dress it up with some tahini, olive oil, and lemon juice and top with roasted chickpeas. Enjoy!

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    Roasted Chickpea Kale Salad
    Total Time
    45 mins
     
    Servings: 2
    Ingredients
    • 3 cups of tuscan kale, finely chopped
    • 1/4 small onion, finely chopped
    • 2 tablespoons of sun dried tomatoes, finely chopped
    • 1 tablespoon of walnuts, finely chopped
    • 1 tablespoon of tahini sauce
    • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
    • Juice of 1/2 lemon
    • Salt to taste
    For roasted chickpeas
    • 1/2 cup of cooked chickpeas
    • 1 teaspoon of olive oil
    • 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
    • A pinch of cayenne pepper
    Instructions
    1. Pre-heat the oven to 450F. Place the chickpeas in a baking bowl, drizzle olive oil, and sprinkle paprika and cayenne.
    2. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until crispy and brown.
    3. In a bowl, combine all of the finely chopped ingredients.
    4. Massage the tahini sauce, olive oil, and lemon juice into the salad.
    5. Top with roasted chickpeas, and sprinkle with salt to taste.
    Recipe Notes

    Enjoy with sliced avocado, can also be enjoyed as a side dish!

    Crunchy Avocado and Kale Salad

    by 4 Comments

    Need a nutrition reboot after a long weekend? This Crunchy Avocado Kale Salad is perfect for getting you back on track for that productive week ahead.  The avocado and kale fusion is loaded with vital nutrients.

    The best part about this salad is that all it takes is some slicing and dicing.  You can buy whole kale and cut off the stem and chop into bite sized leaves or you can buy prepackaged kale without the stem and ready to eat.  For those of you still transitioning from iceberg lettuce, feel free to try different greens that you might like better.  Spinach is another green that offers a multitude of nutritional benefits.

    Kale SaladBut for those of you ready for that kale powerhouse, this recipe is it. Kale is a leafy green vegetable that belongs to the Brassica family, a group of vegetables including cabbage, collards, and Brussels sprouts that have gained recent widespread attention due to their health-promoting  phytonutrients.  The kale helps to round out this recipe by providing vitamin K, A, and C, folate, B vitamins, copper, manganese, and even more fiber.

    Avocados are known for their healthy fats and potassium.  Studies indicate that they may even help lower cholesterol levels.  They bring so much flavor to anything you add them to, especially a salad like this one.  The high fat content (keeping in mind they are healthy fats!) helps keep you full for hours along with the fiber from the kale.

    For this recipe, all you need to do is chop up your kale and avocado and mix in a bowl with you sunflower seeds (or any seeds you have) and olives.  Top with one of our many homemade dressings like our Apple Cider Maple Vinaigrette or our Creamy Mint Infused Avocado Dressing.  What other veggies do you like to toss into your kale salads?  Let us know in the comments below!

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    Crunchy Avocado & Kale Salad
    Total Time
    5 mins
     
    Servings: 1
    Ingredients
    • 4 cups of kale
    • 1/2 Haas avocado
    • 2 tablespoons of sunflower seeds or any seeds
    • 2 tablespoons of green olives
    Instructions
    1. Chop kale and avocado.
    2. Mix everything together in a bowl.
    Recipe Notes

    Enjoy with your favorite dressing! You can find some DIY dressings on our site.

    Creamy Mint Infused Avocado Dressing

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    This Creamy Mint Infused Avocado Dressing is the perfect thing to make ahead of time and use on dishes for the rest of the week.  It is super easy to make and is also a great option for that produce that might be on the verge of going bad.  All you need to do is whip it together in a blender and throw in a jar for the rest of the week.

    Avocados have tons of healthy fats and potassium and may even help lower cholesterol levels.  They bring so much flavor to anything you add them to.  The high fat content (keeping in mind they are healthy fats!) helps keep you full for hours.  

    Avocado DressingHow many of you have trouble finding the perfect avocado? There are a couple tricks that I use to try and get the perfect little green guy each time.  First, I begin by looking at the color of the exterior of the avocado.  The deeper green is usually a more ripe avocado.  Second, you can feel the firmness of the avocado.  You don’t want one that is super mushy but you don’t want one that is too firm either.  Try to find one that is just slightly soft to the touch.  And my for my final trick, I pop off the brown stem of the avocado to see the color inside.  Usually, if the tip comes off easily and has a nice shade of green, that can indicate the ripeness of the avocado.

    Take one avocado, a jalapeno, some garlic, diced tomatoes, limes, onion, water, and mint and combine all together in a blender or food processor. I love to use this dressing on salads or on my favorite taco recipes.  Check out our 5 Minute Pepperjack Protein Tacos.  You can store the remaining dressing in the fridge for up to 1 week in an airtight container. What would you put this creamy avocado dressing on? Let us know in the comments below!

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    Creamy Mint-Infused Avocado Dressing
    Total Time
    5 mins
     
    Servings: 16
    Ingredients
    • 1 small hass avocado
    • 1 jalapeño, de-seeded
    • 2 garlic cloves
    • 1/4 cup of fresh tomatoes, chopped
    • Juice of 2 limes
    • 1/2 medium onion, chopped
    • 1/3 cup of water
    • 6-7 fresh mint leaves
    Instructions
    1. Blend away.
    Recipe Notes

    One serving=2 tablespoons

    Cilantro and Sweet Potato Salad

    by 5 Comments

    Now here’s a flavor pair I bet you have never thought of.  This Cilantro and Sweet Potato Salad is a unique combination to switch it up from your typical seasoning methods. Using herbs like cilantro adds a huge amount of natural flavor.

    Photo by Louis Hansel @shotsoflouis

    Photo by Louis Hansel @shotsoflouis

    Herbs, like cilantro, are often known for adding a huge kick of flavor and also having some medicinal properties.  They are also known for their antioxidant properties, which can help fight off chronic diseases by fighting free radicals

    Did you know that the color of the veggies indicate the types of vitamins and minerals they typically contain? The red color of sweet potatoes and tomatoes illustrate that they are a part of the carotenoid family.  Carotenoids are loaded with vitamins A and C.  These vitamins play many functions in our body, including supporting eye health and strong immune systems, but they also act as antioxidants.  

    Throwing this salad together will help your body fight off major disease and really strengthen that immune system. Toss this together by cutting up sweet potatoes into small cubes and cooking in pan with 1 cup of water until water has disappeared and sweet potatoes are tender.  Check the tenderness by poking with a fork.  If the fork goes through the potato with ease, then  they are all ready! In a small saucepan, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil and saute your garlic and onion. Add in your cilantro and garlic/onion combo to potatoes.  Season with a bit salt and pepper to taste once you are all finished.

     

    I am constantly looking for recipes to use up all of my herbs before they go bad.  This is a perfect one to add to your book of recipes for unique ways to incorporate all of your herbs.  What do you think about this cilantro and sweet potato union? Let us know what you think in the comments below!

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    Cilantro and Sweet Potato Salad
    10 mins
    Total Time
    10 mins
     
    Servings: 2
    Ingredients
    • 2 sweet potatoes
    • 1/2 bunch of cilantro
    • 4-5 cloves of garlic
    • 1 /2 onion
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • Salt and pepper to taste
    Instructions
    1. Cut up sweet potatoes into small cubes
    2. Cook in pan with 1 cup of water until water has disappeared and sweet potatoes are tender
    3. In a small saucepan, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil. Saute garlic and onion
    4. Add cilantro and garlic/onion to potatoes
    5. Season with salt and pepper to taste
    Recipe Notes

    **The nutrition label is automatically generated through a plugin. As a result, there may be some inaccuracies in label values. Please use this label as a guide to give you a general idea of the nutrition content of this recipe.

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