Blueberry Superfoods Salad

This well-balanced, plant-based meal idea also makes great leftovers

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups raw kale, stem removed and chopped
• 1½ cups B.C. blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 1½ cups cooked quinoa, cooled (2/3 cup uncooked quinoa)
• 1 cup raw beet, peeled and grated
• 3 tbsp hemp hearts
• ? cup Flax Lemon Vinaigrette (see recipe below)
• ¼ cup sunflower seeds

Flax Lemon Vinaigrette

• 3 tbsp flax seed oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp lemon zest, finely grated
• 1 tsp pepper
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Vinaigrette

1. In a bowl, whisk together, lemon juice, parsley, honey, lemon zest, pepper, salt and turmeric.
2. Slowly drizzle in the flax seed oil until emulsified.

Salad

1. In a bowl combine kale, blueberries, cooled quinoa, grated beet, hemp hearts and flax lemon vinaigrette.
2. Top with sunflower seeds.

Serves 4.

Recipe courtesy of BC Blueberries

The many benefits of blueberries

In the summertime, particularly late July through August, one of Mother Nature’s best treats is at its prime: fresh blueberries. When super nutritious foods are being considered, blueberries always make the list.

A day spent picking blueberries or sourcing them from a local farmer’s market is well worth it. In scientific testing of over 100 foods, blueberries consistently rank highly for their antioxidant benefits. These health-promoting properties have been shown to play a role in better blood-pressure maintenance, protecting cardiac muscle, improving insulin response, reducing memory loss, and reduced growth of cancer cells in breast and colon cancer studies.

One cup of blueberries provides four grams of fibre, 11 grams of carbohydrate and about 85 calories. Blueberries are also hydrating with a water content of 85 percent. Given their superfood status, there is unfortunately an abundance of misinformation online that exaggerates these claims.

What is true is that blueberries are worth including in your meals and snacks regularly. Enjoy them fresh in the summer months and then keep a supply in the freezer for topping oatmeal or throwing into smoothies in the fall and winter. They’re a perfect natural way to satisfy a sweet craving.