Kale Salad w/ Pomegranate Seeds

The last couple of weeks I've been on a special diet - mainly because I was having some allergic reactions but wasn't sure what was causing it.  The diet doesn't allow any processed food essentially.  No meat, bread, dairy, coffee, drinking..yeah, it's been a blast.  As I start introducing more foods into my diet, I think I've concluded that I'm allergic to dairy - which will make things interesting seeing as much as I love cheese and any dessert with cream in it, but one step at a time.  I have been pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoy some of the meals though. I thought I would share a couple with you, starting with this kale salad. 

Start with a bunch of kale.  If you've never tried kale, you really must.  It's a great substitute for lettuce, it's great for you and fills you up easily.  Rub 1 bunch of kale with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon lime juice and 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger.

I did this in a large bowl, and that worked best. 

Chop two tablespoons of red onion.

I used a half of a pomegranate, but you could easily use the whole one.  Pomegranate seeds are what makes this salad so tasty!

Combine the pomegranate seeds and the chopped onions.  One of my favorite blogs "The Italian Dish" had a post about how to deseed a pomegranate, if you need some help please click here to get step by step instructions.

Add the onions and pomegranate seeds on top of the kale.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  You can also add toasted walnuts on top. This is a tasty dish and great for you.  177 calories, with 5 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber.  Your body will love you after this salad!

Kale Salad w/ Pomegranate Seeds

Serves 4

Adapted from Whole Living Magazine

1 bunch of kale

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon lime juice

1/2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

2 tablespoons chopped red onion

1/4 chopped toasted walnuts

course salt and pepper

Rub 1 bunch of kale with olive oil, lime juice, and ginger.

Toss and set aside.

Add 1/2 pomegranate seeds, red onions and walnuts and toss.

Season with salt and pepper. 

Enjoy!

Pomegranate Swirl Popsicles

One more step toward making homemade ice cream - popsicles. I found a huge article in a magazine recently with all kinds of popsicle ideas; so I combined a couple ingredients that sounded good, and made my own version. Enter pomegranate yogurt popsicles, healthy and tasty!

Very little ingredients needed for this recipe; Greek yogurt and pomegranate juice.  I also added some sugar so the yogurt flavor wouldn't be too sour.

Begin by filling the popsicle holders 3/4 of the way full of pomegranate juice.

I mixed the Greek yogurt with some sugar, and then filled the popsicle holders up the rest of the way with the yogurt.

Swirl together so the juice mixes with the yogurt.  Freeze for around eight hours.

Believe it or not there are only around 50 calories in one of these.  It's a great dessert, without going overboard.  Plus it takes not even 10 minutes to assemble, so you can make them the night before and enjoy the next day.  Perfect summer indulgence!  

I'm off to the Midwest for a long awaited reunion with a bunch of families I grew up with, and am so excited to spend some quality time with old friends!  Plus, I get to sit outside without sweating, might even need a sweatshirt; excited doesn't even begin to cover it.  I will be back August 8th, and look forward to sharing more recipes with you then.  Have a great weekend and week everyone :)

Pomegranate Swirl Popsicles

Serves 4

8 oz pomegranate juice

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

1/3 cup of sugar

Combine the Greek yogurt and the sugar well.

Fill the popsicle holders 3/4 full of pomegranate juice.

Fill the rest of the holder with the yogurt and sugar mixture.

Stir to combine the juice and the yogurt.

Freeze for 8 hours, and enjoy!