Protein + Potassium + Vitamin C = Power Salad! [Vegan Fruit Salad]

Protein Powered Citrus Fresh Fruit Salad

When you choose to eat a plant-based, or vegan diet, you have to maintain a constant awareness about the nutritional value of the ingredients you use in your dishes -- all of them. It's so much easier to stick to the tried and true meals and snacks. Believe me, Jim and I could happily eat refried beans and spanish rice every single day of the week! But we don't. Because people who maintain a constant variety in their diet are the healthiest - they don't worry about getting enough vitamin C, potassium, or protein. The variety takes care of that. So when you create a simple fruit salad for a snack or for breakfast, make it a Power Salad! by adding a handful of nuts, some extra citrus, or deep blue berries.

The salad we enjoyed this morning (below) contained the following powerful combo:
Potassium 11.8%
Vitamin C 178%
Protein 8%
Dietary Fiber 57.5% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA).

Sweet to eat, and SUCH a good-for-you treat!
;-)

Power Salad! [Vegan Fruit Salad]

1 whole Oro Blanco Grapefruit
1 whole large Navel Orange
2 whole Bananas
12 halves Pecans
12 halves Walnuts
1 tbsp Craisins

Mix and serve.

This is just one of millions of combinations you can come up with, but try to use fruit that is local and in-season for the very best flavor and nutritional punch (Also, it's cheaper! I bought an 8lb bag of the sweetest grapefruit for $2.99 and an 8lb bag of softball-sized sweet navel oranges for $3.99 at Simonian Farms). Sprinkle a few of your favorite nuts on there for a bit of protein. Add some dried fruit for color or flavor, but keep it down to very small amounts.

Have fun. Be creative.