I’m NUTS about Salads! Giveaway (ends 9/01/12)

Summer is the best time to enjoy salads. You can certainly enjoy them year round (my family does) but the summer is the best time to get fresh fruits and veggies at your local farmer’s market.

My family loves salad. It’s quick and easy to make, filling, satisfying keeps me from having to hang out in a hot kitchen. Plus who wants to eat a meal that is heavy and weighs you down during the summer?

What I love about salads is that they are so versitile. You can prepare them as the main meal, use them as a side dish and even snack on a salad. You can also add anything you can think of to salads including meats, seafood, fruit, vegetables, cheese and nuts.

I have two salads that I have been making frequently this summer. One salad consists of baby spinach, feta cheese and fresh strawberries. I use this mostly as a side sald or a snack.

Another salad I’ve been making is a lot heartier and more filling and satisfying. It provides me with a variety of textures from soft lettuce to crunchy nuts, as well as a variety of flavors.

Here is how you make this salad. I don’t have a name for it so I’ll just call is the Fisher Nut Summer Salad (the heavier ingredients – cucumbers and peppers – sunk to the bottom).

Ingredients:

- Lettuce

- Carrots

- Peppers

- Cucumbers

- Feta Cheese (or another crumbly cheese)

- Fisher Nuts Walnuts

- Fisher Nuts Sliced Almonds

- Fisher Nuts Dried Cranberries

- A sprinkling of black pepper (optional)

Prepare your salad like you normally would (mix the vegetables together in a big bowl). Top the salad with a generous amoun to of Feta Cheese. Then sprinkle on a handful of Fisher Nuts Walnuts, Fisher Nuts Sliced Almonds and Fisher Nuts Dried Cranberries. Top with your favorite dressing. For this salad I recomment a raspberry vinegarette or balsamic vinegarette.

I love adding nuts to salads. I wish restaurants would offer nuts with their salads. Most restaurants tend to stick with the usual veggies (carrots, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce). Although peppers and cucumbers are crunchy they don’t have the same kind of crunch and flavor that nuts do. I also find that the nuts really add to the flavor of the salad over all.

Nuts are also good for you. Walnuts for example are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, which may improve blood lipids and other cardiovascular disease risk factors. They can also help with weight management, Diabetes, certain cancers, cognitive (brain) health and bone health (*Source Walnuts.org).

Almonds are also great for you. They are one of the top healthiest tree nut. They provide protein and fiber, Vitamin E, magnesium, calcium and even iron. They also contain a significant amount of fatty acids, Omega-3 and Omega-6 which are vital nutrients your body needs. Omegas are abundant in fish products, but many people don’t like fish, so nuts are a great alternative option (*Source: AmondsHealthBenefits.org).

Cranberries are not a fruit that people often associate with salads. They add a burst of sweet and tart flavor to your salad. Cranberries are also great on top of ice cream, yogurt, dry cereal and oatmeal. Cranberries also have great health benefits but you’d have to eat a significan amount of dried canberries to reap any benefits. I just rather look at them as “nature’s candy”.

Have you ever added nuts to your salad? What is your favorite nut to add? What about cranberries? Have you tried them as a salad topper before?

You can find A LOT of salad recipes at www.FisherNuts.com/Recipes/Salads-Sides. I LOVE the green beans and almonds. The Tropical Fruit Salad would make a great dessert and perfect for a hot summer day.

For more information about Fisher Nuts visit FisherNuts.com. They are also on Facebook and Twitter.

Fisher Nuts would love for one lucky reader to have fun creating their own summer salad with a great prize package that consists of the following:

• Fisher Chef’s Naturals Sliced Almonds
• Fisher Chef’s Naturals Walnut Halves & Pieces
• Fisher Dried Cranberries
• 5 reusable produce bags
• Salad dressing shaker
• 8-quart stainless steel mixing bowl
• 11-inch salad tongs

If you are like me you won’t be able to resist snacking on the nuts and cranberries before you even start the salad.

This giveaway is open to US residents only and will end as 12:01 AM (EST) on September 1, 2012. The winner will be chosen at random using a random number generator from all eligible entries. The winner will be notified via e-mail and will have three days to reply or a new winner will be chosen.

To enter please describe for me what kinds of salad you would create using any or all of the Fisher Nut products listed above (Almonds, Walnuts and/or Cranberries) – OR – visit the Salad recipe page (link is above) and leave a comment and tell me which salad you would love to prepare for your family?

For extra entries you can use the Rafflecopter widget (below) but you MUST complete the initial entry requirement or the additional entries won’t qualify.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Kimberly

*I am working with Fisher to create my own original salad recipe using Fisher Nuts and tools they provided. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments. 

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