A delicious, colorful & flavorful salad you'll love

If you start and end your day with plenty of veggies packed with fiber, you are setting yourself up for metabolic success.

Including a large portion of low-carb, high-fiber vegetables in each meal (like this salad!) is essential for maintaining stable blood sugar, lowering your diabetes risk and promoting a healthy digestion.

The salad I’m sharing today has some KEY ingredients that help stabilize blood sugar and promote healthy digestion, including:

Leafy greens: Lettuces, spinach, arugula and kale are great examples of leafy greens that are all low in carbohydrates and high in fiber, making them an excellent choice for stabilizing blood sugar levels. Their high magnesium content helps enhance insulin sensitivity, allowing cells to better utilize glucose.

Bell peppers: Bell peppers are low in calories and carbohydrates but rich in vitamin C and antioxidants. These nutrients help improve insulin sensitivity and reduce inflammation, supporting stable blood sugar levels.

Chickpeas (or edamame, lentils or beans): These legumes are nutrition powerhouses, and offer the potential for blood sugar control as they add resistant starch, plus extra fiber and protein. And they’re great for hormonal balance, too!

Lean Protein like Tofu or Chicken: Adding these protein sources to your bowl will help to keep you full, and slow down the flow of glucose from any carbs, helping to stabilize blood sugar. Plus, these lean options (like tofu or chicken) are great lower-calorie /lower-fat protein options for days you want to keep it “light”!

With this in mind, I’m sharing one of my favorite salad bowl recipes - Mediterranean Salad Bowl (inspired by a BeingBrigid recipe)- that is packed with fiber, protein, healthy fats, but also rich in colorful, antioxidant-rich veggies that help promote longevity and better immunity (among many other benefits). It’s one of my favorite meals for a hot summer day, or when I’m ovulating.

I always promote “eating the rainbow” and “counting colors instead of calories” due to the many benefits of eating a wide variety of colorful plant-based foods with each meal.

*see below recipes in both English and Spanish

RECIPE (ENGLISH):

Mediterranean Salad Bowl 

Ingredients (serves 2):

  • 5 cups mixed lettuce (I like to mix romaine lettuce with a softer purple lettuce, or can be mixed baby greens; whatever you prefer)

  • 1⁄2 cup yellow or orange bell pepper, chopped

  • 1⁄2 cup red bell pepper, chopped

  • 1⁄2 cup chickpeas (cooked/drained, or can use dried for extra crunch; edamame also works well!)

  • 1⁄2 cup artichoke hearts, chopped

  • 1⁄2 small red onion, chopped (about 1/4 cup; option to leave 2-3 mins in boiling water with a tbsp of vinegar; it helps to soften taste of onion)

  • 3/4 of the Mediterranean Spiced Tofu, or 8-10oz spiced chicken breast (see below)

  • 1⁄2 cup cooked quinoa 

Tahini Dressing:

  • 2 tbsp Tahini

  • 1 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar + 1 tsp lemon 

  • 1 tbsp water

  • Sea salt and pepper to taste (about ½ tsp pink salt + 1⁄4 tsp pepper) and optional a pinch of turmeric 

Mediterranean Spiced Tofu (or Chicken)

Ingredients (for 2-3):

  • 1 block extra firm organic tofu, drained (or option to use 8-9oz free-range organic boneless breast, aprox 4-5 oz per person)

  • 1 tsp avocado oil to marinate + 1 tsp for cooking 

  • 1 ½ tsp cumin

  • 1 tsp smoked paprika

  • 1⁄4 tsp crushed red pepper or 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

  • pinch of cinnamon

  • Sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions for Mediterranean Tofu (or chciken):

1. Cut tofu into small cubes and toss in oil and spices. (If using chicken, its similar- cut into cubes and marinate in oil and spices, and I like to add 1 tbsp lemon, too).

2. Heat a medium/large skillet on medium heat and spray to drizzle with avocado oil. Add tofu and heat until slightly browned and crispy, tossing in between (about 8-10 mins total). (If using chicken it might take a bit longer, but again, cook until slightly browned on outside). 

3. Taste and add more salt or seasoning if desired. Then serve your portion (about ½ or 3/4 cup mediterranena spiced tofu or chicken per person) with salad!

Instructions for salad bowl:

1. Mix dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Add all other salad ingredients to a large bowl with the marinated tofu and tahini dressing. Serves 2.

RECETA EN ESPAÑOL:

Tazón Mediterráneo

Ingredientes (Sirve 2):

  • 5 tazas lechugas mixtas (sugiero mezclar lechuga verde crespa o romana con lechuga morada)

  • 1⁄2 taza de chiltoma naranja o amarilla, picada 

  • 1⁄2 taza de chiltoma roja, picada 

  • 1⁄2 taza de garbanzos (o edamame) ya cocinados

  • 1⁄2 taza de corazones de alcachofa, picados (puede ser de jarra/ lata)

  • 1⁄4 cebolla roja pequeña, picada (opción de pasarla por agua hirviendo con una pizca de vinagre, para quitar el sabor fuerte)

  • tofu especiado (ver abajo, yo uso 3/4 del bloque especiado para este tazon que sirve 2 personas; u opcion de usar 8oz de pollo marinado)

  • 1⁄2 taza de aguacate

  • 1⁄2 taza de quinoa ya cocinada 

Aderezo de Tahini (aqui va una receta simple o puedes comprar de Balance Food):

  • 2 cucharadas de tahini

  • 1 cucharada de vinagre de sidra de manzana+ 1 cucharadita jugo de limón 

  • 1 cucharada de agua

  • Sal y pimienta a gusto (yo uso aprox ½ cdta sal rosada y 1⁄4 cdta pimienta) + una pizca de cúrcuma 

Tofu especiado mediterráneo (o pollo)

Ingredientes (para 2-3):

  • 1 bloque de tofu orgánico extra firme, escurrido (o reemplazar por 8-10oz pechuga de pollo, 4-5oz por persona)

  • 1 cucharadita de aceite de aguacate + 1 cucharadita para cocinar 

  • 1 ½ cucharadita de comino

  • 1 cucharadita de paprika ahumada

  • 1⁄4 cucharadita de pimiento rojo triturado

  • pizca de canela

  • sal rosada y pimienta a gusto 

Instrucciones para el tofu (o pollo) marinado:

1. Escurra el tofu luego córtalo en cubos pequeños y agrega el aceite y las especias. (Igual con el pollo, cortar h marinar, y si usas pollo sugiero agregar una cucharada de limón también). 

2. Calienta una sartén grande a fuego medio, agregando solo un pequeño chorro to aceite de aguacate. Agrega el tofu (o pollo) con especies y cocinar durante 10 minutos, revolviendo después de 5 mins. (En caso de pollo puede ser un poco más de tiempo, también hasta que esté dorado por fuera y bien cocinado por dentro).

Instrucciones para el tazón (de ensalada, vegetales, aderezo y tofu/pollo):

1. Mezcle los ingredientes del aderezo de Tahini en un tazón. Agregue todos los demás ingredientes de la ensalada en un tazón grande con el tofu (o pollo) marinado y el aderezo de tahini.

Please let me know if you try this bowl and love it as much as I do!

Love and Healthy Recipes,

Mariana