Experience Nutrition

Tag: Summer Salad

  • Experience Nutrition: Arizona Summer Lemon Cucumber Salad

    Experience Nutrition: Arizona Summer Lemon Cucumber Salad

    During the summer our local Arizona farmers and many across the USA are growing lots of hydrating veggies, such as cucumbers, tomatoes, and all kinds of melons.

    Click to see the Top 10 Hydrating Foods

    As always, thanks so much to our local Arizona farmers for growing such incredible produce for us during our extremely hot Arizona summer and for providing it to us safely at our local farmers markets in such a safe, social distancing way. Our community really appreciates your hard work, passion, and dedication.

    The intuitively created salad, was inspired by the Lemon Cucumber, which looks a little like a tennis ball and are fresh and crispy.

    Summer Lemon Cucumber Salad Recipe

    Create a fresh, simple salad with your favorite cucumbers, heirloom tomatoes, green onion, fresh lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. Add olive and capers, and enjoy your salad.

    Thanks specifically to our Phoenix farmers for the fresh produce for this salad.

    • Crooked Sky Farms
      • Lemon cucumbers. Love and look forward to their beauty and crispness every summer.
      • Bell peppers. Enjoying the green and yellow sweet bell peppers.
    • Pinnacle Farm Phoenix
      • Sungold Tomatoes. Thank you for your honor system farm stand in the South Mountain area.
    • Arizona Micro-Greens
      • Micro Salad Mix. Sunflower Shoots, Pea Shoots, Radish, Cilantro.

    Simple Ingredients

    • 1 Lemon cucumber, sliced
    • 1 bell pepper, sliced
    • 1 medium tomato or 1/2 cup mini tomatoes
    • 1 green onion, sliced
    • 1/2 lemon, juiced
    • 2 TBSP organic extra virgin olive oil
    • 2 TBSP olives
    • 1 tsp capers
    • Few micro-greens

    Simple Steps

    • Rough chop all veggies.
    • Place all veggies in a small bowl.
    • Toss all veggies with olive oil and lemon juice.
    • Plate and garnish with micro-greens.

    Enjoy your salad…

    Top 10 Hydrating Foods

    You don’t have to get all of your liquids from beverages. About 20% of the water we consume comes from food. Eating food high in water content adds fiber, electrolytes, and vitamins to our diets.

    The following veggies and fruit, contain 89% or more water. Enjoy!

    • Cucumbers
    • Watermelon
    • Pineapple
    • Celery
    • Blueberries
    • Lettuce
    • Tomatoes
    • Pears
    • Grapefruit
    • Cantaloupe

    Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self-Care Retreat: November 13-16, 2020

    If you are interested in a fun, memorable, one-of-a-kind weekends, experiencing plant-based cooking, along with self-care, hiking, yoga, and special Sedona experiences.

    Click to learn more about the Sedona Retreats.

    I’m happy to share more about the retreat and answer your questions. Call Melanie Albert at 602.615.2486, send a note to Mel@MelanieAlbert.com or fill out the Form and I’m happy to answer any questions.

    • Beautiful Plant-Based Lunch Creation: Avocado Tartare
    • WOW! Yoga at Cathedral Rock. Dreams come true!
    • Getting started with our mindful chopping for our fresh Tomato Gazpacho and Avocado Tartare.

  • Experience Nutrition: Phoenix Summer Farm-to-Table Arugula. Corn. Tomato Salad

    Experience Nutrition: Phoenix Summer Farm-to-Table Arugula. Corn. Tomato Salad

    By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author

    After two full weeks of traveling to Boston for my niece Mallory’s beautiful, loving wedding; to my parents’ home of 30 years in Cocoa Beach; to a stop in  Barbados (while on the East Coast, of course, it makes sense to visit Barbados to explore the island and scout villas for plant-based culinary retreats.

    For my close friends, an Albert family photo at Mallory’s wedding. xoxo

    AlbertFamily
    The Albert Family. Mallory and Phil’s Wedding. June 2, 2019.

    Self-care in Cocoa Beach…breathing in the beauty of the Atlantic Ocean.

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    Self-Care in Cocoa Beach.

    Barbados. So beautiful, I have to share right away, one of my favorite spots in the paradise of Barbados. The iconic Sandy Lane Beach.

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    Enjoying the serenity of Sandy Lane Beach in Barbados with my Tree Pose.

    Back Home in Arizona

    As soon as I was back in Phoenix, I shopped at our downtown Phoenix Public Market to purchase kale for a cooking event with the Maricopa County Summer Reading Program and bought a few seasonal goodies from our local farmers.

    DowntownPhoenixMarket
    Saturday Stop: Phoenix Public Market

    Honestly, I was not planning on cooking that morning before the Kale Salad event, but I could not resist, so I’m happy to share with you my first Arizona Summer Farm-to-Table Salad after returning to our desert.

    Arizona Corn. Tomato. Arugula Summer Salad.

    This salad was inspired by three of my summer favorites. Fresh corn-on-the-cob grown by long-time Farmer Frank of Crooked Sky Farms in Phoenix; Matt’s tomatoes from the Community Exchange;  and baby arugula grown by Blue Sky Organic Farms in Litchfield Park. Plus, I picked up flavorful Hatun Oregano Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

    Hatun Olive Oil
    Fun shopping for Hatun Olive Oil at the Phoenix Public Market

    Simple Ingredients

    • ½ ear corn-on-the cob, kernels cut off the cob
    • 1 cup tomatoes
    • 1 cup arugula
    • 1 lemon cucumber, sliced
    • 1 lime, juiced
    • 2 tbsp olive oil
    • Pinch sea salt
    • ¼ cup walnuts
    • ¼ cup Kalamata olives, sliced
    • 1 tbsp capers

    SummerSaladIngredients
    Arizona Summer Goodies. Thanks farmers!

    Simple Steps

    • Pre-heat oven to broil.
    • Slice corn off the cob.

    SweetCornonCob
    Slice the corn off the cob.

    • Place corn and tomatoes on a flat sheet pan.
    • Drizzle with olive oil and sea salt.

    OliveOil-CornTomatoes
    Drizzle olive oil onto corn and tomatoes.

    • Broil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
    • Gather Mise en Place (all ingredients in place) to prepare the salad.

    CornSaladMiseenPlace
    Be mindful. Mise en place to create the Arizona Summer Salad.

    • Place all ingredients into a small bowl.

    SummerSalad-IngredientsinBowl
    Place all ingredients into bowl. Then gently toss.

    • Gently toss with hands.
    • Plate mindfully.

    • Enjoy.

    Pause and enjoy your mindful plating.

    SummerSalad-plating
    Pause. Enjoy your mindful plating.

    We eat with our eyes first. Enjoy your Summer Salad.

    Summersalad
    We eat with our eyes first. Enjoy your summer salad.

    Plant-Based Culinary & Self-Care in the Magic of Sedona, September 13-16, 2019.

    Click to learn more about the retreat on the Experience Nutrition website.

    I’m excited to participate in the Local First Arizona Independents Week, June 29 – July 7, 2019. During that time, save 20% (up to $500) on the retreat. Contact Melanie Albert if you are interested: Mel@MelanieAlbert.com or 602.615.2486.

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    To stay in touch, visit us on Facebook and Instagram: @nutritionauthor

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Plant-Based Recipes by Melanie Albert: Summer Salad: Arizona Peach Tomato Arugula Salad

    A New View of Healthy Eating: Plant-Based Recipes by Melanie Albert: Summer Salad: Arizona Peach Tomato Arugula Salad

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    Summertime!!!! Peaches!!!!

    I’m so happy peaches are in season in Arizona right now. Today, I bought a few perfectly ripe peaches and tomatoes from local farmers. I really didn’t have a plan to prepare them; however, right away when I got home I intuitively created, for the first time, a salad with both tomatoes and peaches. I really got excited and created sweetness with figs to balance the bitterness of the arugula. Plus, I love goji berries for their earthiness and pistachios for a little crunch.

    Have fun creating your own peach salads and desserts this summer!

    A-peach-agritopia-IMG_E5809
    Beautiful Peaches at Agritopia, Gilbert, Arizona

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    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    • Arizona peaches, sliced (neighbor friend)
    • Arizona yellow tomato, sliced (Abby Lee Farms)
    • Arizona arugula (Blue Sky Organic Farm)
    • Goji berries, soaked in water for 10 minutes
    • Mission figs, sliced
    • Blood Orange Olive Oil (Queen Creek, Arizona)
    • Pistachios
    • Arizona fresh mint (Maya’s Farm)
    • Sea salt

     

    A-peach-mise-IMG_7057

    SIMPLE STEPS

    • In a small bowl, toss arugula, blood orange olive oil, and a dash of sea salt.
    • Add a few peaches, goji berries, Mission figs, and mint to the arugula.
    • Toss all ingredients.
    • Beautifully plate.
    • Enjoy!

    Making the salad…

    A-peach-mise-IMG_7059

    B-peach-ingredients-bowl-IMG_7061

    Plating Mise en Place

    c-peaches-plating-mise-img_7066.jpg

    Plating Video…

     

    The Final Summer Arizona Peach Tomato Arugula Salad

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    Enjoy…

     

     

    “A New View of Healthy Eating” by Melanie Albert is available directly from the author, and she’ll gift wrap for you.

     

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