Watermelon Pomegranate Toss Salad

Also known as The Red Eye Special Salad, this salad supplies more than half your day’s need for the B vitamin, folate, the entire day’s need for vitamin A, and hefty doses of vitamin C, iron, magnesium, calcium, and antioxidants. It also is rich in lutein and zeaxanthin, two compounds shown to protect eyes from vision loss.

Ingredients

Dressing

• 1 cup pomegranate juice
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (Pomegranate vinegar is the best)
• 1 1 /2 tablespoons orange zest
• 1 tablespoon agave syrup
• 1 small minced shallot
• 1/8 teaspoon stone-ground mustard
• 1 /2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Dash of salt and pepper to taste

Salad

• 8 cups (6 ounces) baby spinach
• 3/4 cup diced red onion
• 2 cups diced watermelon (placed on paper towel to drain excess fluid)
• 1 clamshell (6 ounces) fresh raspberries
• 1 /2 cup pomegranate seeds

Instructions

1. Place juice in a small saucepan over medium-high heat and simmer until reduced to about 3 tablespoons and liquid is a thick syrup. Set aside.
2. When cool, add remaining dressing ingredients, from vinegar to salt and pepper. Whip.
3. Set aside for flavors to blend.
4. Place spinach in a large serving bowl. Top with onion, watermelon, raspberries and pomegranate seeds.
5. Divide onto 4 salad plates and drizzle with dressing.

Yield: 4 servings; dressing makes about 3/4 cup

Nutritional Analysis per serving: 376 Calories; 63 percent fat (26g); 3.8g saturated fat; 5 percent protein; 32 percent carbohydrate; 6.2g fiber

Attribution

Recipe and photo used with permission from: Watermelon Promotion Board