Arugula and Fruit Salad with a Blood Orange Vinaigrette

Here is a super healthy and delicious salad for you! I am quite a fan of arugula. If you look through my blog postings, you'll see plenty of meals made with arugula. I'll post some yummy arugula recipe links at the bottom of this entry for you because I am very generous. I love the flavor of arugula. It is so much more sophisticated tasting than most of the leafy greens that are out there, and it also has tons of health benefits. It is a good source of several vitamins, folic acid, iron, and phytochemicals that fight cancer. And, not only is it good for you, but eating arugula also makes you more sexually energized - it's an aphrodisiac!

I think you'll find this salad to be very tasty. You'll love the combination of the fruit, avocado, and toasted walnuts with the sweet tasting vinaigrette. This salad makes quite the pretty display of colors and it is fun to eat. Enjoy!

Recipe for Arugula and Fruit Salad with a Blood Orange Vinaigrette

INGREDIENTS:
6 cups of arugula leaves
2 medium Hass avocados, chopped
2 large mangos, chopped
3 mandarins (I use Wonderful Halos), separated into pieces
1/3 cup of walnuts
2 Tbsp. of extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. of honey
1 1/2 Tbsp. of blood orange vinegar
1/8 tsp. of kosher salt
Several grinds of fresh black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Toast the walnuts. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and arrange walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place in oven and cook for about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

While walnuts are toasting, mix up the dressing. Add all ingredients to a bowl and whisk well. Set aside.

Divide the arugula onto plates. Top each with chopped mango, avocado, mandarin pieces, and toasted walnuts. Drizzle with the vinaigrette and then sprinkle with some extra black pepper, if desired.

Makes 4 servings

Original Recipe

More Tasty Arugula Recipes
Mediterranean Orzo Salad
Asparagus and Arugula Pizza
Penne Pasta with Arugula Pesto
Asparagus and Arugula Risotto
California Pizza Kitchen-Style Quinoa Salad 
Greek Pizza

Spinach, Pear & Cacao Nib Salad

I love this salad! It was served at my wedding, and this was my first time having it since then. I borrowed the Scharffen Berger cookbook from my mother's house, and when I saw the recipe for the salad I knew that I had to make it. The salad is very tasty and pretty healthy. The crunch and flavor of the cacao nib in the salad is amazing. Chocolate works well in everything! Enjoy.

Recipe for Spinach, Pear & Cacao Nib Salad
INGREDIENTS:

Chocolate, in a salad? YES! 

For the salad

8 Cups of Baby Spinach Leaves
1 Ripe Red Bartlett Pear, sliced
1 Ripe Bosc Pear, sliced
1/3 cup of chopped toasted walnuts
1 Tablespoon of cacao nibs
Coarse Salt & Freshly Ground Pepper

For the Cacao Nib Vinaigrette
1 Tbsp. of balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. of cacao nibs
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS:
Put the vinegar into a small bowl and stir in the cacao nibs. Slowly pour in the olive oil and whisk.
Place the baby spinach leaves, sliced pears, toasted walnuts, and cacao nibs into a large salad bowl. Pour on the vinaigrette and toss well. Season the salad with a pinch of coarse salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Divide amongst bowls. Serves 3.

Recipe Source: The Essence of Chocolate, Recipes for Baking & Cooking with Fine Chocolate

NOTE: Do you love the crunchiness of cacao nibs? I think you'll love this recipe for fudge...!

Spinach Salad with Sweet Poppyseed Dressing

Yesterday a good friend called me up to invite me and Greg over to his place for an impromptu dinner.  Luckily our calendar was open, so we were able to spend time hanging out with Joseph, Alyssa, and their adorable 18-month old son.

We ate some really great food - Joseph made some amazing pork chops, scrumptious corn on the cob, and his famous mashed potatoes and famous rolls (he swears the rolls were homemade, but they looked and tasted so perfect that I have my doubts)! We ate belgian waffles piled high with  berries and whipped cream for dessert. So yummy!

I volunteered to bring a salad, and I made one that I have been wanting to make for quite some time. This salad is another favorite of mine that my mom used to make. The recipe for the salad and dressing comes from the Cooking Light magazine. Since I didn't have any of the light items in my house, the salad dressing really wasn't too light. But, it was still DELICIOUS! Of course if you want to make the light version, you can use light mayo in place of real mayo and skim milk in place of 2% or whole.

I love the salad because it is almost like eating a dessert, but you still get the health benefits from the spinach, fruit, and nuts. I'll be making the salad again tomorrow when my sister and brother-in-law visit with the kids. I hope they will enjoy it as much as we did!

Recipe for Spinach Salad with Sweet Poppyseed Dressing

INGREDIENTS:
For the salad:
1 5-oz box of baby spinach, washed and dried
1 16-oz container of strawberries, washed, stemmed, and sliced thin
1/2 cup of seedless red grapes, washed, stemmed, and chopped in half
2 - 3 Tbsp. of walnut halves

For the dressing:
1 Tbsp. of white wine vinegar
3 Tbsp. of granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. of poppy seeds
3 Tbsp. of skim, 2 %, or whole milk
1/4 cup of mayonnaise (regular or light)

DIRECTIONS:
Make the dressing first. In a mixing bowl, combine the vinegar, sugar, poppy seeds, milk, and mayonnaise. Use a wire whisk to stir well, and mix until ingredients are well incorporated. Cover bowl and store in fridge until ready to use.
Put the spinach, strawberries, grapes, and walnuts into a salad bowl. Put dressing on top and toss; or dish up salad in individual bowls and let everyone drizzle on their own desired amount of dressing. Makes about 4 servings (dressing makes more than 4 servings, and can be stored in a covered container in the fridge for up to two days). Enjoy!

Recipe Adapted from: My Recipes, Originally from Cooking Light June 2003

***It looks like Md will finally see some relief from the heat this week! I'm excited that I will be able to use my oven again - I've been going through baking withdrawal.  Hope to post the key lime tart recipe on Monday or Tuesday - it's one of my favorites!***