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Chef Wendell: Summer garden salad and homemade ranch dressing

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – What you put into your body can make a world of difference. Making sure the food you ingest is nutritious is vitally important.

Just like plants, reach for the warm sun for nourishment and eat plant foods fed by the sun, earth, water to grow, flourish and bloom. Eating closer to earth provides your cells with the building blocks required to protect, refresh and rebuild.Homemade Ranch Dressing                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

1/2 cup nonfat organic yogurt or 1/3 cup non-fat Greek-style yogurt

1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk

3 tbs. Veganese grapeseed mayonnaise

1 1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/4 tsp. garlic powder (Not garlic salt!)

1 tbsp. finely chopped fresh chive or green onion

Himalayan salt

  • If you use plain yogurt, strain it in a strainer lined with a paper town and let drain for 20 minutes or overnight. (The leftover liquid is whey. Add it to your smoothie)
  • In a mixing bowl, combine the yogurt and the rest of the ingredients.
  • Season with salt and pepper to taste

 Summer Salad

Green Beans, washed and trimmed

Basil leaves, stemmed

Oregano leaves, stemmed

Spinach, baby kale leaves

Arugula leaves

Cucumber slices

Beets, fresh, skinned and diced

Tomato from the vine, quartered

Crostini wedges

Boiled egg

Walnut pieces

White beans, drained

Micro-greens for garnish

Bleu cheese crumbles

  • Gather all ingredients and wash everything thoroughly to remove field residue.
  • Boil and peel egg; cut into quarters. Then drain and rinse beans.
  • Steam the stemmed green beans but leave some crunch! Shock them in an ice bath to preserve color.
  • Take heavy whole grain bread (like Ezekiel); butter it then bake it, cut it into triangles to make a crostini.
  • Place green goodies onto a platter, and then artfully arrange all of the ‘clean’ building blocks your body needs.