If you didn’t already know, I have a new cookbook, The With or Without Meat Cookbook! To give you a little taste, here’s a freebie recipe from it. Please let me know what you think of the book. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this salad!

When berries are in season in spring and summer, this stunning berry-bursting salad will be sure to strike your fancy. Luckily, you can make it all year long using frozen berries, too. Adorned with fresh basil, dressed in a perky lemon-berry vinaigrette dressing, and accented with natural almonds and more berries, it’ll actually seem a bit fancy, too. The bonus: This berry, basil, and baby romaine salad is more than a bit nutritious.

berry, basil, and baby romaine salad

Makes 4 servings: 2 cups each

1 1/4 cups fresh or thawed frozen raspberries or wild blueberries, divided
1 large shallot
3 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
Juice of 1/2 small lemon (1 tablespoon)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon + 1/8 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
5 cups packed baby Romaine lettuce (5 ounces)
1 cup diced unpeeled English cucumber
1/2 cup packed fresh small, whole basil leaves
2 1/2 tablespoons crumbled soft goatc-style cashew heese
2 tablespoons sliced natural almonds, toasted

1. Add 1/2 cup of the berries, the shallot, applesauce, lemon juice, oil, pepper, and salt to a blender. Cover and puree. Set aside.
2. Arrange the lettuce, cucumber, and basil on 4 individual plates or a large platter. Sprinkle with the berry vinaigrette, the remaining 3/4 cup berries, the goat-style cheese, and almonds. Adjust seasoning, and serve.

Per serving: 110 calories, 6g total fat, 1.4g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 0mg cholesterol, 240mg sodium, 11g total carbohydrate, 4g dietary fiber, 5g sugars, 3g protein

Recipe adapted with permission from The With or Without Meat Cookbook by Jackie Newgent, RDN, CDN (American Diabetes Association, 2014).

Jackie’s Culinary Nutrition Tips!

• Don’t skimp on lettuce; it’s what makes a salad a visually satisfying salad.
• Instead of just tossing berries onto a salad, puree some of the berries into vinaigrette to create fruitiness in two ways … while making the salad dressing more flavorful and colorful with fewer calories teaspoon per teaspoon
• Toss fresh herbs into your salad along with the leafy greens; fresh basil and fresh mint are my two favorites for salads
• A little crumbling of vegan goat-style cheese can go a long way in adding that desirably creamy mouthfeel