Green Detox Salad Recipe: Cleanse Your Body Naturally, At Home

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Here is an amazing recipe to help kick off the New Year and support all of your efforts to cleanse your body after holiday feasting and indulgence. If you're finding this later in the year, it will be helpful after any period of over indulgence, or if you just want a tasty salad recipe! It’s made with a blend of greens and veggies that are all uniquely flavorful: earthy beets, with pungent cilantro and parsley; bitter dandelion with tart and sweet chard; salty celery with spicy garlic; and refreshingly tart apple cider vinegar in the salad dressing.

 

 

How The Bitter Flavor Aids In Digestion

The bitter flavor is absent from typical American fare, and that is a sad thing, for your body gains significant benefits from bitter greens, and here is why: when the bitter flavor is detected by the brain via the taste buds, a cascade of events takes place. The brain sends messages stimulating the salivary glands, stomach, liver, and gallbladder. Digestion, absorption, and nutrient assimilation is improved, meaning you will get more benefit from your meals. This enhanced digestive process is also beneficial to the immune system, mood, and overall energy levels.

 

The More You Dislike Bitter Flavors, The More You Need Them

You might be saying, "Well, what if I don't like bitter foods?" If you didn’t know this already, the more you dislike the bitter flavor, the more your body needs bitter-tasting foods. Research suggests that people who are more sensitive to bitter flavors may have a greater need for these beneficial compounds. This may explain why some people who do not like bitter flavors initially may develop a taste for them over time, as their bodies begin to feel better and recognize the health benefits associated with consuming these foods.

 

The Benefits Of This Green Detox Salad

The ingredients in this simple and flavorful salad can help heal your body by helping to aid your body's natural detoxification process. Your body detoxes itself naturally, but by supporting your liver, kidneys and lymphatic system, you can aid your body in functionally properly and effectively. Here is how the ingredients in the salad might help support your body's natural detox process:

• Leafy greens: Dandelion greens, rainbow chard, spinach, kale, collard greens, and other leafy greens are rich in antioxidants and phytochemicals that can help protect the liver from damage and support kidney function.
• Celery: Is reputed to reduce acids that cause arthritis and gout. It's also high in antioxidants, which can help protect the liver and kidneys from oxidative stress and damage
• Parsley: Stimulates the kidneys, helping them work better, and reducing excess water retention
• Beets: Are stimulating and nourishing to the liver, and are also high in iron which is helpful if you suffer from anemia or heavy menstrual cycles.
• Garlic: Contains compounds that help activate liver enzymes responsible for flushing out toxins from the body. Garlic can help promote a healthy immune system and digestive system by killing harmful bacteria and promoting the growth of healthy bacteria.
• Lemon juice: Can help to support the kidneys because of the protective effect of vitamin c and its high antioxidant power.

 

The healthier you become, you actually begin to crave the more complex flavors of salad greens and fresh herbs. As your palate clears, you can detect subtle flavors in food such as delicate sweetness, saltiness, or tartness. Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, once said “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food”. Let's get to the recipe.

 

The Best Detox Salad Dressing Recipe

This makes more than you need for the recipe, so keep it in the fridge for the week! Here are the ingredients you need for the dressing:

• 2 lemons for juicing
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons white miso paste
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper, or to taste
• 1/8 tsp of salt, or to taste 

 

How To Make The Dressing:

1. Grab a mason jar with a lid. Add the juice from your lemons, the apple cider vinegar, olive oil and the miso paste. Whisk the miso paste with a small whisk or a fork. It has a tendency to stick together, so make sure you mix it thoroughly.
2. Add your minced garlic, oregano, nutritional yeast, and freshly cracked black pepper and stir well. It will already have some salt from the miso paste, so taste before adding salt. Salt to your taste preference!

 

 

 

Delicious Green Detox Salad Recipe At Home

Ingredients You Need For This Detox Salad:

• ½ bunch fresh dandelion greens, torn into bite size pieces*
• 1 bunch of rainbow chard, stemmed, torn or chopped into bite size pieces*
• ½ bunch cilantro leaves
• ½ bunch flat leaf parsley leaves
• 3 celery stalks, thinly sliced on a slight angle
• 1 medium size roasted beet, peeled, diced
• 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
• 1 cup roasted chickpeas

 *Feel free to substitute the dandelion greens or rainbow chard for other leafy greens, like kale, spinach, collared greens or even finely shaved brussel sprouts.

 

How To Assemble The Salad:

Grab a large bowl and add all your awesome veggies. Toss all the leaves, veggies, and chickpeas together. Pour over some of the dressing to taste. Top with the sunflower seeds for a delicious and satisfying crunch!

Keep the rest of the dressing in the fridge for easy salads all week!

 

 

I hope you love this salad, or at least learn to love it! Your mind and body will thank you :) If you want to learn more about detoxing the body naturally, check out Your Body Is A Detox Machine.