Salad Synergy Tips:

• Increase the amount of nutrients and antioxidants absorbedfrom the produce in your salad (i.e. tomatoes, dark leafy green, carrots) by including foods containing good fats–like avocados, nuts or extra virgin olive oil!
• Increase the amount of plant-based iron you absorbby combining iron-containing plant foods (spinach, kale, lentils, tofu) in a salad with foods high in vitamin C (citrus, kiwi, pineapple, lemon, bell pepper).

TIP—Add fruit to your salad or use lemon juice in your salad dressing!

• Increase the taste experience of your salad by including foods with different flavors, colors and textures!Start by including something creamy like avocados and something crunchy like toasted nuts, seeds or croutons.
• Stand-alone salads will be a lot more satiating if you include an animal or plant-based protein-rich food(such as beans, tofu or quinoa, seafood, eggs, skinless turkey or chicken).

How to Build A Salad with Nutrition and Culinary Synergy:

Dark green leafy veggies and lettuce (spinach, kale, arugula, mixed greens, cabbage, radicchio, romaine)

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Colorful fruit/veggies/whole grains (tomatoes, bell pepper, carrots, broccoli, berries, citrus, quinoa, wheat berries, etc.)

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GOOD FATS (avocados, salmon, nuts/seeds and/or dressing made with extra virgin olive oil, walnut oil, etc.)

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“Crunch” (nuts, seeds, crispy beans, croutons)

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Lean PROTEIN–animal or plant-based (salmon, grilled chicken, cooked shrimp, hard-boiled eggs, cheese, beans, baked tofu, tempeh, etc,)