4 salads complete with the whole garden that are refreshing

With the heat, the appetite falls… But the enjoyment of food does not have to decline. With these salads you can take care of yourself and enjoy also in summer.

You could eat a different salad every day by combining different foods and modifying the seasonings and dressings. But it is worth having an idea of the general possibilities to serve as inspiration to laymen and novices.

4 COMPLETE SALAD RECIPES

A complete salad must provide – in addition to fiber, vitamins and minerals – healthy fats, proteins and, of course, carbohydrates.

Therefore, in addition to leafy vegetables, you can count on cereals, pasta, legumes, other vegetables, tubers, mushrooms, nuts, seeds … and a good dressing. Here are delicious examples of complete salad recipes, for you to enjoy and nourish yourself correctly.

CRISPY WILD RICE AND BEETROOT SALAD

INGREDIENTS (FOR 4 PEOPLE):

• 100 g wild rice
• 150 g basmati rice
• 1 red endive
• 1 white celery branch
• 100 g pumpkin
• 30 g pumpkin seeds
• 20 g peanuts
• 20 g roasted corn
• 1 beetroot
• 12 chive stalks
• 1 orange
• half a packet of sprouted beetroot
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• salt and pepper

PREPARATION (15′ + 20′-40′ COOKING):

1. Boil the two rices separately. Basmati takes about 20 minutes, wild – about 40. If boiled together, keep both times in mind and accept that basmati rice will not be so white. Once boiled, drain and cool. Season with a little olive oil and set aside.
2. Cut the celery into thin strips, grate the pumpkin and mix both with the rice. Add also the roasted corn, peanuts and pumpkin seeds, previously toasted, and finally incorporate the red endive cut into julienne, half of the beetroot and chopped chives.
3. Prepare the dressing by mixing the grated skin of the orange with two tablespoons of its juice, a tablespoon of honey, one of apple cider vinegar and three of olive oil, as well as a little salt and pepper. Divide into four plates with the help of a ring-shaped mold and decorate with the rest of the germinated beetroot.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Calories: 300
• Carbohydrates: 43 g
• Protein: 8 g
• Fat: 10 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg

WARM MUSHROOM SALAD

INGREDIENTS (FOR 4 PEOPLE):

• half oak leaf lettuce
• 100 g canons
• 50 g arugula
• 300 ml water
• 12 quail eggs
• 100 g fresh mushrooms
• 150 g fresh shiitake mushrooms
• 100 g thistle mushrooms or gums
• 2 sliced tender leeks
• half a lemon (its juice)
• 40 g walnuts
• 1 onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 branch of thyme
• 5 branches of parsley
• 1 splash of sweet sherry
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• peppercorn
• salt

PREPARATION (20′ + 20′ COOKING):

1. Before starting, prepare a pot with 300 ml of water, an onion, eight peppercorns, a bay leaf, a branch of thyme and the trunks of parsley. Bring it to a boil, when it reaches the boil lower the heat, add a splash of sweet sherry and leave about ten minutes waiting for the mushrooms.
2. Meanwhile cook the eggs in another saucepan with boiling water and salt for about three minutes. Cool immediately to stop cooking and peel them. Remove the pie from mushrooms and shiitakes (you can use them for a soup or for a filling). Wash them quickly in cold water and cut them into slices. Chop the thistle mushrooms without washing them.
3. Pour the shiitake into the broth first, after three minutes add the thistle mushrooms and, when the boil is recovered, wait a couple of minutes more and add the mushrooms. In two minutes remove the mushrooms with a skimmer and set aside. Remove the other ingredients with the skimmer and leave the broth on the fire.
4. When it reaches the boil pour the leeks and let cook for five minutes: after this time, remove and drain well. Leave the broth on the fire until it is reduced by approximately half, strain it and mix five tablespoons of it with a little salt, a tablespoon of lemon juice and two tablespoons of olive oil. Reservation.
5. Clean the lettuce, lamb’s lettuce, parsley and arugula, and mix in a salad bowl with the cracked walnuts. Add the peeled eggs and split in half and season everything with the sauce.

VARIANT:

You can make this salad with canned mushrooms simply sautéed. If you want a point of sophistication, you can use truffle oil instead of olive oil.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Calories: 189
• Carbohydrates: 129
• Protein: 10 g
• Fat: 12 g
• Cholesterol: 157 mg.

AVOCADO COCKTAIL WITH STRAWBERRIES

INGREDIENTS (FOR 4 PEOPLE):

• 500 g new white potatoes
• 2 avocados to the point
• 200 g tofu
• 150 g strawberries
• half red pepper
• 1 French lettuce
• 1 red onion
• 1 vegetable yogurt
• 5 coriander sticks
• 1 lime
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• a handful of ground pink pepper
• salt

PREPARATION (20′ + 30 COOKING):

1. Wash the potatoes and steam them until they can be pierced with the tip of a knife.
2. While cooking, peel the onion and cut half-moons as thin as possible. Also cut the half pepper into strips and the tofu diced. In a pan with three tablespoons of olive oil start by sautéing the onion, after two minutes add the pepper and finally the tofu, and season with salt and ground pink pepper. Once the potatoes are boiled, peel, diced and mixed with the sautéed vegetables and tofu.
3. Squeeze the juice from the lime. Cut the avocados in half, remove the bone, peel them and cut them into cubes. Drizzle with a little lime juice and add them to the potato mixture with vegetables and tofu. Wash the strawberries and incorporate them too, delicately.
4. Chop the chopped cilantro, mix it with a little salt, lime juice, oil and yogurt, and set aside. Wash the lettuce leaves and line with them four bowls in which to distribute the salad. Finally cover with the yogurt and cilantro dressing, and serve very cold.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Calories: 344
• Carbohydrates: 21 g
• Protein: 9 g
• Fat: 25 g
• Cholesterol: 2 mg.

TENDER SPINACH AND BROAD BEAN SALAD WITH ASPARAGUS VINAIGRETTE

INGREDIENTS (FOR 4 PEOPLE):

• 200 g tender spinach leaves
• 100 g beans in oil
• 1 bunch of wild asparagus
• 1 bunch of young garlic
• 1 slice cereal bread
• 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 50 ml virgin olive oil
• 20 ml Modena vinegar
• 80 g Parmesan vegetable cheese in coarse shavings
• salt

PREPARATION (20′ + 10′ COOKING):

1. Spread the bread in oil and cut it into cubes. Bake until crispy and golden brown and place it on a kitchen paper so that it loses excess oil. Wash the lemon and remove two strips of skin with a peeler avoiding the white part, which is the one that bitters. Squeeze the juice. Cut the reserved skins into very thin strips and put them on the fire with a tablespoon of honey, one of lemon juice and another of water until they caramelize slightly. Reserve.
2. Wash the tender spinach leaves and dry them carefully with a cotton cloth or kitchen paper. Place them in a wide bowl. Drain the beans and add them to the spinach.
3. Peel the tender garlic peel, remove the greenest part and cut them wide into two or three pieces. They also wash the asparagus, discard the hardest base, cut the tips leaving a couple of centimeters of stem and chop the rest. Blanch the chopped stems in boiling water for about six minutes, drain, cool and crush with four tablespoons of olive oil and a little salt. Strain and set aside.
4. In a frying pan, heat a little olive oil and sauté the asparagus tips for about four minutes. Then add the tender garlic and sauté four more minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
5. Mix the asparagus oil with the caramelized lemon and its juice. Add the bread, garlic and asparagus to the bowl of beans and spinach, lightly brown and pour two tablespoons of Modena vinegar. Grate some Parmesan cheese on top and serve with the asparagus sauce.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Calories: 347
• Carbohydrates: 28 g
• Protein: 17 g
• Fat: 18 g
• Cholesterol: 18 mg.