Baby Greens and Strawberry Salad…Get Up and Grow with Dole
I have become a salad addict.
Addict, I tell you. Sometimes twice a day, but at least once a day. Salad, salad, salad. And though I am still living on minimal carbs with my new diet, I am a huge fan of tossing in fresh fruit…especially strawberries. A few candied nuts, some creamy, tangy goat cheese crumbles, and a pomegranate vinaigrette make this my go to salad as of late. Need a little more protein? Chopped chicken breast. Yes, just do it.
This salad is so easily adaptable – thank goodness – that I just can’t seem to get enough. Luckily for me, I am working for the right company. Dole is one of the companies I am proud to be working with this year, so stay tuned throughout the summer and fall as you’ll be seeing lots of fresh goodies from me!
In this particular salad, I used their new Power Up Greens bend of baby kale and greens. Have you seen these in your produce aisle? If not, look for them You’ll find them in a clear plastic box, near the bagged lettuce mixes. They offer such great flavor combinations, you’ll love them all! I also used fresh Dole strawberries, since ours are just now getting ripe in the garden. You can never have too many!
Baby Greens and Strawberry Salad
makes 1 large salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup Dole Greens
- 3 Dole Strawberries, chopped
- 1/4 to 1/2 Granny Smith Apple, chopped
- 2 tablespoons goat cheese crumbles
- 1 tablespoon chopped candied pecans
- 2 tablespoons Pomegranate Dressing
Instructions
Layer ingredients in a bowl. Serve chilled.
Dole is convinced that the secret to a happier, healthier world is increased fruit and vegetable consumption so it is hitting the road this summer to directly challenge North Americans to make healthy eating their #1 priority.
After spending the past few summers sampling recipes and working with retailers to show what’s possible, the produce giant is turning up the volume in 2015 with the largest North American tour in its history and a first-ever customizable healthy-living pledge that rewards participants with various wellness incentives including Fitbits®, DOLE® produce and the chance to win a six-day health-makeover getaway to California.
Kicking-off today in Dallas, New Orleans and Pittsburgh, the Get Up and Grow! North American Tour brings an expanded version of Dole’s popular mobile fruit and vegetable feast and nutritional celebration to 480 supermarkets and special events spread across 45 cities in 25 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces through September.
The 115-day, 11,700-mile journey represents a joint effort between Dole Fresh Fruit of Westlake Village, Calif., Dole Fresh Vegetables of Monterey, Calif., and the Kannapolis, N.C.-based Dole Nutrition Institute (DNI), and is co-sponsored by Blue Diamond Almond Breeze®.
Multiple colorful Get Up and Grow! Tour caravans with rolling kitchens will deliver innovative new recipes, product samples, a do-it-yourself smoothie bar, free giveaways for the whole family and other activities specifically created to showcase the fun, flavor and preparation possibilities of fresh fruit and vegetables and a plant-based diet. Visitors can also present a grocery receipt showing a qualifying level of DOLE® fresh purchase to receive a limited-edition, commemorative Get Up and Grow! item.
The new recipes available for sampling range from the Banana and Blue, Breakfast Smoothie, Power Punch Smoothie and Spinach-Avocado Hummus to the Grilled Banana Parfait, Southwestern Gazpacho, Caesar’s Bounty Salad and Charred Summer Salad, which Dole has proclaimed 2015’s “Official Salad of Summer.”
Jenn LaVardera, Dole’s registered dietitian and the nutrition and health communicator for DNI, is heading up the Tour from a nutrition education perspective, and is attending a number of the Tour stops. She helped create the exclusive Get Up and Grow! scorecard being distributed to participants to help them track their summer eating.
“With Get Up and Grow!, we’re going beyond past Dole tours to directly challenge the public to adopt a healthier daily routine including eating more fresh fruits and vegetables,” said LaVardera. “Our role as nutrition leader comes with an obligation to inspire North Americans to set their own personal diet, fitness or other goals – and then provide the recipes, resources and motivation to help them reach those milestones.”
The new Get Up and Grow! Pledge is an interactive online exercise that allows visitors to create their personal Get Up and Grow! page where they can commit to living healthier in 2015, eating more fruits and vegetables and setting their own health and happiness goals. Those who return to their page to track their goals throughout the year will have the chance to receive free Fitbits, DOLE fresh fruits, vegetables and salads, and other rewards.
All pledge-takers will automatically receive a regular stream of health and nutrition tips from DNI while one lucky participant will be rewarded with a wellness getaway to the California Health & Longevity Institute at the Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village combining medical, nutrition, fitness and life balance instruction, and spa services.
Most-ever U.S. and Canadian Tour Stops
Due to increased demand by retailers who participated in past Dole programs, the Get Up and Grow! Tour has been expanded to three regional caravans in the U.S. plus a separate ongoing effort in Canada – representing the most far-reaching Tour in the company’s history. A full Tour schedule is available at www.dole.com/getupandgrow.
The Eastern Tour departs from Pittsburgh and visits Carlisle, Pa.; Baltimore; Edison, N.J.; Morristown, N.J.; New York City, Boston; Albany, N.Y.; Rochester, N.Y.; Charlotte, N.C.; Greenville, N.C.; South Georgia; Jacksonville, Fla.; and Miami.
The Central Tour leaves New Orleans; Indianola, Miss.; Cincinnati; Columbus, Ohio; Cleveland; Detroit; Grand Rapids, Mich.; St. Louis; Springfield, Mo.; Kansas City, Mo.; Des Moines, Iowa; Minneapolis; Omaha, Neb.; and Lincoln, Neb.
The Western Tour leaves Dallas and visits Houston; San Antonio; Phoenix; Los Angeles; Berkeley, Calif.; Sacramento, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; Seattle; Spokane Wash.; Boise, Idaho; and Salt Lake City.
The Tour also visits Vancouver, Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto and the Maritime Provinces.
Disclaimer: As mentioned, this post is sponsored by Dole. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
