Home-grown lettuce a base for this tropical salad with a kick

Absolutely nothing like it—fresh lettuce picked straight from the garden! Within a matter of about five minutes last evening some gorgeous new red-leaf lettuce was plucked from the earth, rinsed in the sink, dried with paper towels, and being passed around at our dinner table as the basis for Tropical Blueberry Salad. I’ve never crunched into something so lovely. Another survivor of the Super Bowl-week freeze in our garden, lettuce is wrongfully presumed to be delicate and vulnerable. Tough as nails yet tender to the taste! If folks had any idea of the difference between supermarket lettuce and the kind that is home-grown, they’d be outside turning up any square inch of dirt they could muster into a mini-garden for greens.

The salad itself was not to be outdone by the dynamite lettuce. Tropical Blueberry Salad coupled fresh blueberries with fresh pineapple chunks. Giving it a real kick was a jalapeño pepper, grated lime peel, and hot-pepper sauce. Although the recipe (courtesy Celebrating a Healthy Harvest) suggested refrigerating the mixture for one hour before serving, I’d recommend letting this marinate overnight so the unusual flavor combo of the sweet and the fire-laden elements can blend and work their magic in this odd-couple pairing.

High in antioxidants and manganese, pineapple also has been lauded for maintaining good eye health, particularly in preventing age-related eye problems such as macular degeneration. And of course the health benefits of blueberries continue to be sung loudly from the highest hill: they’re said to rank number-one in the world of anti-oxidants. For the aging they’re considered bright rays of hope to those of us in Geezerville, because they’re thought to help keep the memory sharp for a long time.

Along with the never-been-fresher red-leaf lettuce (since red and dark-green leafy vegetables are generally higher in nutrients than light greens), who could argue with this salad combination?

Tropical Blueberry Salad

2 cups fresh blueberries

2 cups fresh pineapple chunks

1 tablespoon fresh jalapeño peppers, chopped

2 teaspoons lime peel, grated

dash of hot-pepper sauce

enough red-leaf lettuce to line four salad plates

Combine blueberries, pineapple, jalapeño peppers, lime peel, and hot-pepper sauce; stir gently to blend. Refrigerate for 1 hour or preferably overnight. Serve on a bed of lettuce. Makes 4 servings.

Funky salad recipe using fresh pineapple boosts magnesium for bone health

With the shrimp I had left over from my Big-Easy Gumbo, prepared yesterday in anticipation of my annual physical, I was fortunate to find another really funky recipe that would enable me to use up all my purchased shrimp.

The March 2011 issue of Prevention magazine featured pineapple as its superfood. Fresh pineapple was cited as being full of nutrients as well as flavor. Besides supplying vitamin C, a cup of pineapple contains one’s daily quota of magnesium, a trace mineral that promotes bone health. Though available all year around, this tropical fruit is at its peak from March through June.

One of Prevention’s fast-idea recipes featuring pineapple was Warm Shrimp and Pineapple Salad, prepared in a skillet. Into the skillet go blackeyed peas, green peas, chopped red bell pepper, shrimp, and pineapple, along with some seasonings. In almost no time this wonderful skillet supper appeared before my eyes (quick if the pineapple already is cut up, of course). It used up my left-over shrimp, it gave me daily requirement of manganese (hooray for bone health. I'm waiting for the report on that aspect of my physical exam as well), and it made Hubby’s eyes pop out when he saw what a colorful and healthy supper dish was arrayed before him.

While we dined on this concoction, we both commented how good Warm Shrimp and Pineapple Salad also would be served cold. Pineapple, shrimp, peas, red pepper all would be good as cold-salad ingredients as well. We’ll find out when we serve it for lunch today. I won't have to talk Hubby into that proposal; he LOVED the dish and was eager to dine on it again.

Warm Shrimp and Pineapple Salad

1 (16-ounce) package frozen black-eyed peas (about 3 3/4 cups)

1 1/4 cup frozen green peas

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt (or salt substitute)

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and cooked

1 1/3 cups chopped pineapple

2 teaspoons lime juice

1/8 teaspoon hot-pepper sauce

1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped (or 1 1/2 tablespoons dried basil)

In large skillet combine black-eyed peas, green peas, bell pepper, oil, paprika, and salt. Cook over medium-high heat for 4 minutes. Add shrimp and cook until mixture is heated through—about 2 minutes. Toss in remaining ingredients. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Makes 4 servings.