Mint Salad–Light, Refreshing and Healthy!

Salads are perfect for summer time–light, refreshing and packed full of good-for-you veggies.  We had an excess of mint growing in our own vegetable garden so we threw in it our salad.  It was so good that we now can’t get enough of it.  Mint has many wonderful health benefits, including relieving nausea, indigestion and irritable bowl syndrome (IBS).  It also contains antioxidants and may help alleviate seasonal allergy symptoms.*  Indeed, we often use them in our Chinese medicinal herbal formulas to support allergy sufferers.*  And who could forget the wonders it works on your breath!

Here is our recipe for Summer Garden Salad with Mint:

1              Head of romaine lettuce, washed and chopped

1 Cup      Loosely packed mint, chopped

1              Cucumber, peeled and chopped

3-4          Radishes, chopped

1               15 oz can of garbanzo beans (We like Eden Organic brand for its BPA free lining)

1 Cup       Tomatoes, chopped

1/2 Cup    Carrots, chopped

For the Dressing:

2 Tbsp     Extra virgin olive oil

3 Tbsp      White vinegar

2 tsp        Dijon mustard

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Mix the chopped ingredients together.

Mix dressing ingredients together separately.  Using a small canning jar is great because no stirring is involved (all you need to do is shake it up), and storing is easy because you can just put the lid on it and put any extras in the refrigerator.

Pour the dressing over the salad, and viola!  Enjoy!

*Disclaimer:  Specific results are not guaranteed.  Results may vary from person to person.