10 HEALTHY CHRISTMAS SALADS YOU SHOULD TRY.

Ah, Christmas! The love, the laughter, gifts and the opportunity to see family and friends who were absent throughout the year make it such a beautiful time.

        Another thing I love about the yuletide season is the Christmas decorations, carols and delicious food. There are so many festive salads you can try and eat during your Christmas dinners that are so delicious. They are easy to make and contain healthy ingredients to titillate your taste buds.

        These Christmas salad recipes below will make guests happy and keep your waistline trim.

So what are the 10 healthy Christmas salads you should try?

• Chicken and Corn Salad
• Fruit Salad
• Mango Avocado and Chickpea Salad
• Pork Salad
• Fruited Cabbage Salad
• Papaya Salad
• Sweet Potato Salad

Chicken and Corn Salad.

Try this tasty but easy salad as an appetizer or side dish.

          Ingredients.

• Three cups of cooked chicken.
• Two cups of cooked corn.
• Four tomatoes, peeled and cubed.
• Two green peppers, chopped.
• Two cups of Mayonnaise.
• Lettuce.

Process.

• Mix the chicken and corn with tomatoes and peppers.
• Stir in 1½ cups of mayonnaise and adjust the seasoning to taste.
• Serve on a bed of lettuce and decorate with the remaining lettuce.
• Chinese and Asparagus Salad. 

Ingredients.

• 2 tsp. Soy sauce.
• Salad greens.
• 1 kg olive oil
• ½ tsp. Honey.

Process.

• Cut the green part of the asparagus into 1-inch part diagonally.
• Cook in boiling salted water for 2 minutes only. Drain and chill.
• Mix soy sauce, olive oil and honey.
• Marinate the asparagus in this for at least 1 hour in the fridge.
• Serve on the greens.

 Fruit Salad.

   They are rich in fibre, this nourishing and crunchy salad is easy to make as a side dish for your Christmas party or dinner. 

          Ingredients.

• One cup of red quinoa.
• One cup of white rice.
• 1¼ cup coconut water.
• ¼ cup of basil.
• 1 tsp. Dried mint leaves.
• Four spring onions are finely sliced.
• One cup coconut flakes, toasted.

   Dressing

• 1/2 of rice wine.
• 2 tsp. Honey.
• Juice of 2 limes.
• 2 tsp. Chicken stock.
• One long green chilli.

           Process.

• Cook quinoa and rice in separate pots. Cook quinoa in coconut water and rice in ordinary water until cooked.
• Transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper and separate with a fork. Allow to cool.
• Place other ingredients in a bowl and stir.
• Put the grains in a bowl and top with herbs, spring onions and coconut flakes.
• Pour dressing over it, stir and serve.

Mango, Avocado and Chickpea Salad. 

Surprise your guests with this delicious salad this festive season.

             Ingredients.

• 100g chickpeas.
• Juice of 1 lime.
• 2 tsp. Coconut oil.
• Two salted capers. You can use any fish of your choice.
• One mango, sliced.
• One avocado halved.
• ½ cup of walnut, chopped.
• 100g sundried olives
• Two bunch of rocket leaves.

          Process.

• Soak chickpeas in 4 cups of water overnight. The next day, drain and rinse well under cold water.
• Put 4 cups of cold water in a pressure cooker, add a pinch of salt and cook for 30 minutes.
• To make the dressing, whisk lime juice, oil and capers in a bowl until combined.
• Place rocket leaves, mango and avocado on a serving platter. Spoon over chickpeas and scatter over walnuts and olives.
• Drizzle with dressing and serve.
• This is another bountiful salad that is not only delicious but high in protein. 

Pork Salad.

Ingredients.

• Two cups of diced cooked roast pork.
• Two cups of diced celery.
• 1 Tsp. scallions
• 1 Tsp. Vinegar
• ½ cup Mayonnaise.
• 1tsp prepared mustard.
• Lettuce.
• 1 tsp. Minced parsley.

Process

• Mix pork, celery and scallions.
• Combine the Mayonnaise, vinegar and mustard. Toss into the salad.
• Serve on lettuce and sprinkle with parsley.
• Italian Tomato Salad. 

Tickle your taste buds with this Italian dish. You family and guests will love this colourful salad.   This is an pleasant addition to any holiday menu.

Ingredients.

• Six large tomatoes.
• ½ tsp. Black pepper.
• 2 Tsp. Olive oil.
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1tsp. dried oregano.

           Process.

• Peel and slice tomato. Arrange on a platter.
• Sprinkle with oregano, salt and pepper.
• Drizzle the oil on the tomato and let it stand for 2 hours.
• Chickpea and Anchovy Salad. 
• Try out this hearty salad that is so nourishing and tasty. The flavour of this salad will blow you away. It is make the salad ahead of time.

             Ingredients.

• One large red onion cut.
• One red bell pepper was diced.
• 2 cups of spinach.
• Two cups of red leaf lettuce.
• Three anchovy fillets in oil drained.
• 1 ½ cup of chickpea.

               Salad Dressing.

• 3 Tsp. Lemon juice.
• 3 Tsp. Olive oil.
• 1 tsp. Salt and black pepper.

           Process.

• Add all the ingredients in a large bowl.
• Mix lemon juice, olive oil, 1 tsp. of salt and black pepper in a bowl. Whisk them together.
• Mix ingredients and drizzle with dressing.

            Fruited Cabbage Salad.

 Ingredients.

• 4 ½ cups of cabbage, finely shredded.
• ¾ cups of green apples.
• 3 Tsp. Lime juice.
• 2 Tsp. Honey,
• ¾ cup of seedless grapes.
• ¾ tsp. Sea salt.
• I tsp. prepared mustard.
• ½ celery seeds.
• ¾ red apples, sliced.
• Grapefruit wedges.
• ½ cup of Mayonnaise.

             Process.

• Combine cabbage, grapes, green apples and grapefruit in a large bowl.
• Put the mayonnaise and remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well.
• Pour the mayonnaise mixture over the cabbage mix. Toss well.
• Line a salad bowl with the lettuce and turn the cabbage into it.
• Garnish with red apple slices.

 Papaya Salad.

   A colourful bowl of fresh fruit is always a great treat! Serve this to your guests and they will be glad you did. This is the perfect holiday salad for your Christmas party and dinner. Feel free to make it with any fruit of your choice.

Ingredients.

• One pawpaw.
• One banana.
• One watermelon.
• One pineapple.
• One lemon.
• Lettuce.
• Cottage cheese.

               Process.

• Peel and dice pawpaw, pineapple, banana and watermelon.
• Squeeze lemon and drizzle on cut fruits to prevent them from darkening.
• Get a small bowl and line it with lettuce.
• Mould cottage cheese in the centre of the bowl.
• Arrange cut fruits around the cottage cheese.
• Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Serve chilled.

Sweet Potato Salad.

 

     I love sweet potatoes. They are not only nutrient-dense and are versatile. You can wow your guests with this simple salad and make them miss summer.

Ingredients.

• Three large sweet potatoes peeled and cubed.
• One small red onion thinly sliced into half-moons.
• 2 tsp. Coconut oil.
• Kosher salt
• ½ dried cranberries.
• ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled.
• 1 Tsp. dried mint leaves.
• Two carrots cut diagonally.
• Black pepper, ginger and garlic.

Salad Dressing.

• 2 tsp. Vinegar.
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard.
• 1 tsp. Honey.
• ½ tsp. Paprika
• ½ tsp. Cumin
• ¼ coconut oil.

Process.

• Put the sweet potato, onions, carrots and oil on a large-rimmed baking sheet. Season with garlic, salt, pepper and ginger.
• Spread them evenly on the sheet in a single layer.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bake for 20 minutes. Let them cool and put them in a large bowl.
• Mix vinegar, honey, mustard and spices. Then pour in oil and whisk them together. Add salt and black pepper.
• Add feta cheese, cranberries and parsley to the potatoes. Drizzle salad with dressing and serve.

 So try these salad recipes. They are healthy plus tasty and give your family and guests a Christmas treat to remember. Consider adding them to your holiday dinner too. 

  Check out these delicious Christmas treats you should try.