This is not your typical mixed-greens salad.
I know that one can get boring.
No, this one is simple, yet filling and has the most beautiful colors.
This recipe has two of my favorite foods that not only are low glycemic, but also are Pitta and Vata pacifying.
Now, let me introduce you to my sweet potato summer salad – The Ayurvedic Version!
So, I created this salad for a lunch this week, because I didn’t have a big appetite — probably due to the heat! — but at the same time, since I’ve been feeling Vata aggravated (overthinking, worrying, stressing about everything) I wanted a meal that could help me feel grounded, if only a little bit.
I had a forgotten medium-sized sweet potato getting old in a corner of my counter and 2 golden beets in my fridge. One ripe avocado — lucky girl! — and the last remains of arugula and spinach. Plus one carrot and yellow squash I had ignored since my last grocery visit.
I washed my hands, played my favorite music at the moment (Tash Sultana), and let my intuition guide me on what to do with those foods.
Before we get into the details, let’s review the Ayurvedic perspective on the main ingredients:
Sweet Potato
The taste of sweet potato in Ayurvedic terms is SWEET (good for both Vata and Pitta)
And one of its characteristics is that it is HEAVY (perfect for my lightness, indecisiveness, and restlessness the last couple of weeks)
Sweet potato is grounding and nutritive. Checked!
Golden Beets
Beets are BITTER (Not so good for Vata, but great for Pitta which gets aggravated in summer) and SWEET.
They increase HOT qualities (Perfect for my Vata dosha, although I’ll reduce it a little bit with the cooling items, like the cilantro)
Golden beets are nutritive, detoxicant, a skin tonic, and stimulant.
Avocado
Avocado is SWEET (good news!)
Pacifies both Vata and Pitta due to its heavy and grounding qualities.
Avocado is emollient, nutritive, and grounding.
THE RECIPE
Sweet Potato Summer Salad
Ingredients
- 1 Medium-sized sweet potato
- 1 Yellow squash
- 2 Small golden beets
- 1/2 cup Carrots
- 1/2 cup Fresh arugula
- 1/2 cup Fresh spinach
- 1 Avocado
- 1/4 cup Fresh cilantro
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Lemon (squeezed)
- 1 tsp Pumpkin seeds
- 1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp Organic mustard
- 1/2 tbsp Nutritional yeast
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil the sweet potato, golden beets, and carrots. When al dente, slice them.
- Steam the yellow squash for a few minutes, when al dente slice it.
- In a small bowl, mix well the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, nutritional yeast and salt and pepper.
- In the salad bowl, add all the cooked ingredients plus the arugula, spinach, sliced avocado, and cilantro. Mix well with the dressing.
- Top with the pumpkin seeds and more cilantro or nutritional yeast.
- Enjoy with a nice cup of lemongrass tea on a hot summer day!
Let me know how you like it!
If you still don’t know your dosha, try my quiz and discover it today 🙂
