Salad Days

Photo by Methyl_Lives

Temperatures are approaching 70 degrees outside in Seattle. That means summer is finally here! Yay! And what would summer be without an overdose of velvety peaches and juicy tomatoes?! Oh-la-la! Here are three variations on a salad that incorporates the best flavors of summer.

1. Start by combining 1/2 cup of orange juice, 2 T sesame seeds, 12 cashews, and 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar in a blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Combine chopped peaches, tomatoes and torn butter lettuce in a bowl. There are no defined ratios; use your eyes and taste buds. Drizzle with dressing to taste.
2. Cube peaches and combine with tomato chunks, fresh basil and a basic vinaigrette. You can substitute watermelon for the peach or the tomato (but not both, O.K.?). You can also add bacon or feta, but there goes the vegan-ness.
3. Mix wedges of tomatoes and peaches, add slivers of red onion, a few red-pepper flakes and cilantro. Dress with olive oil and lime or lemon juice.

A college friend of mine had a great post on her blog recently about sunscreen, so I thought I’d take a moment on this first day of summer (it starts a little late here in Seattle) to write the corollary on diet. 

While most people know to wear sunscreen, avoid tanning beds, and cover up when they go outside, it is less commonly known that a high-nutrient diet is a powerful force in the prevention of all types of skin cancer. Cancers, in general, flourish in the body when cells that undergo free radical damage and the subsequent DNA damage are unable to be repaired by the cell’s DNA monitoring and repair tools. Natural, plant based foods are rich in antioxidants and phytochemicals, substances that are needed for these repair mechanisms to function most optimally.

Researchers in Australia confirmed the protective benefits of a high-nutrient, plant-based diet. They analyzed the diet, skin color, and sunlight exposure of 1,360 adults, aged 25-75, who participated in a community-based skin cancer study from 1992-2002. Two main eating patterns were identified: a meat and fat pattern and a vegetable and fruit pattern.

Not surprisingly, the meat and fat pattern diet was positively associated with development of skin cancer, and even more strongly associated in participants with a skin cancer history. Increased consumption of the vegetable and fruit dietary pattern reduced skin cancer occurrence by 54%, with the protective effect mostly attributed to the consumption of green, leafy vegetables.

In conclusion, the researchers deemed that a dietary pattern characterized by high meat and fat intakes increases skin cancer odds, while a dietary pattern characterized by higher consumption of green vegetables decreases it.

Care to join me for a salad?

It is supremely unfortunate, that when people think of veggie burgers what comes to mind is some tasteless stand-in for hamburger that comes out of a cardboard freezer box. (Have you tasted one of these things recently? The texture is not natural. And don’t get me started on the salt or long list of cryptic ingredients.)

photo by misterjt

I’m guessing the only reason these things gained any traction is because a carnivore plopped one on the grill as a peace offering: Here, we don’t want you to feel left out. We don’t eat them because they taste good; we only eat them so we can partake in a culinary custom.

This Fourth of July weekend, I encourage everyone to stop treating veggie burgers as an afterthought or some kind of consolation prize and serve hearty, delicious, homemade burgers made from garden-fresh ingredients. In Lukas Volger’s new cookbook, Veggie Burgers Every Which Way, he shares more than 30 creations that focus on flavor first. In the interest of full-disclosure, I haven’t tried any of these yet, but my mouth is watering…

If you don’t have time to go to the bookstore before the big celebration, here are three recipes out of his book to get you started:

Armenian Lentil Burgers
Baked Falafel Burgers
Mushroom Burgers with Barley