Recipe: Rainbow Pepper Salad

The more I learn about nutrition, the more I know that it isn't really enough just to eat more plant-based foods. According to myplate.gov, a woman my age needs 2 cups of fruit each day and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables. For some people, and some days for me too, it can be a struggle just to reach those markers in our world of prepackaged, processed convenience. However, there are still more things to keep in mind when reaching for those fruits and vegetables and one of those things is color.

The more science learns about nutrition, the more it is becoming apparent that the variety and color of the fruits and vegetables we eat can play a roll in health and in our chances of avoiding serious illness. Color is actually an indicator of the types of phytochemicals that are contains within a fruit or vegetable. For a quick summary of phytochemicals and a rundown of different color categories, there is an article on livestrong with more information.

In an attempt to diversify the color in my own diet, I pieced together the following salad from several different recipes on the web. The results are both tasty and colorful!

Ingredients for dressing:

• 1 cup sliced Red onion (approx.)
• 1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced or put through a press
• Pepper to taste

Ingredients for salad:

• 4 bell peppers including at least 1 red, 1 orange, and 1 yellow. For this recipe I used 2 red.
• 1 cup cucumber, chopped (I prefer english)
• 1 pint grape tomatoes
• 1 cup chopped parsley
• 15 olives of choice
• 1/2 cup feta cheese

For the dressing:

For me, the most important part of this recipe is how you treat the onions. In a raw salad, onions can easily overpower the entire dish, but with a few easy steps, the onions can be used to flavor the whole dish, without leaving you with onion-breath for the rest of the day.

Using a mandolin slicer, or very carefully with a kitchen knife, shave think slices off the onion. Make them as thin as you can get them and still have them come out in rings. You will need about a cup of sliced onion total.

Once sliced, run your knife through the onions to roughly cut them into smaller pieces. The rings are pretty, but I discovered that they get knotted together in clumps in the salad if they aren't given at least  a rough chop.

In a small bowl, add the 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, the juice of a lemon and the 1 tbsp of olive oil. To this add the 1 clove of garlic (minced or put through a press), the onion, and pepper to taste. Let the onion sit in the dressing while you prepare the rest of the salad. This will flavor the dressing and also take the bite out of the actual onion.

I know there doesn't seem to be a lot of liquid here, but the vegetables in the salad will give off liquid as well, so this ratio of dressing to salad ingredients is best to avoid a soupy salad. As it is, some liquid will collect at the bottom of the bowl for this salad.

For the salad:

Remove the seeds from the four bell peppers and chop them into pieces about a half inch big, or to your personal preference.

Place the chopped peppers into a large bowl. Continue by chopping the cucumber. You will need about a cup. Add this to the peppers

Next, half the grape tomatoes and add them to the bowl. Continue by chopping 1 cup of parsley and adding it to the bowl along with the 1/2 cup of feta (I like to break it into fine crumbles) and your choice of 15 olives cut into slices.

Pour the dressing you made earlier over the top of these ingredients and gently toss together. Let the salad sit in the fridge for at least a half hour before serving. This will allow the peppers to let their juices seep into the dressing and all the flavors will meld together. As mentioned, some liquid will collect at the bottom of the bowl, so toss again to combine before serving.

There you have a salad with a variety of color and a great flavor. It is also a great dish to make and eat all week or to take to a gathering when you need to bring a dish.

But what is the nutritional content, you ask? Well, I entered the information for my preferred ingredients (like my brand of olives and feta cheese) to http://nutritiondata.self.com/. Assuming this recipes yields 6 serving, the following are the nutritional facts for this recipe.

Calories             99

Fat                      5g

Sat. Fat               1g

Cholesterol        8mg

Sodium            354mg

Carbohydrates 12g

Fiber                    3g

Sugars                  4g

Protein                 4g

Calcium                6%

Vitamin C         274%

Iron                       7%

Vitamin A            60%

According to self.com:

The good: This food is a good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin B6, Folate, Potassium and Manganese, and a very good source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Vitamin K.

The bad: This food is high in Sodium.

Despite not actually adding salt, there is still a good bit of sodium here from the olives and the feta cheese. To reduce the sodium content, you could eliminate these items from the recipe, add less,  or look for olive and cheese brands with a lower sodium content.

Otherwise, this is a good solid recipe that packs a healthy dose of vitamins in just a few calories and it is far more satisfying than nutrition in pill form. Enjoy!