Since salads made with vegetables and greens are usually served cold, they might seem unappealing in the wintertime. Many people stop eating them during this season of the year due to the cold weather.
However, the thermometer should not modify your eating habits and especially your consumption of healthy foods. To keep salads in your menu during the winter and avoid your falling for a high-calorie soup, we give you some handy ideas to prepare some tasty, original salads. 
The key is to combine raw foods with cooked ones.
Remember that not all ingredients in a salad need to be raw. You may combine cooked and uncooked ingredients in the same salad, in order to let the hot ingredients give your recipe a unique touch that is adequate to the season. The variety of salads that can be prepared is so wide that picking the right combination of colors and flavors only depends on the limits of your imagination.
It’s true, however, that the essential ingredients of a salad are the uncooked ones, such as green and red lettuce, endives, fresh spinach, tomatoes, onions, carrots, cucumber, and peppers. All of these ingredients may be combined with any cooked ingredient, such as steamed vegetables, meat, rice, legumes, potatoes, or pasta.
Here are two very delicious winter salads:
Black Bean Salad
Ingredients:
- 2 cups cooked black beans, fresh or canned
- 1 tablespoon jalapeño chillis, finely chopped (optional)
- 1 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ cup sweet corn (canned), drained
- ½ cup onion, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup red pepper, chopped
- 1 small tomato, seedless and diced
- 2 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- ½ tablespoon chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
Directions:
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate for an hour and serve.
Serves 4
Nutrition value:175 calories, 9 grams protein, 5 grams fat, 52 grams carbohydrates.
Chicken Salad
Ingredients:
- 1 cup nonfat yogurt
- ¼ cup orange juice
- 4 teaspoons honey or sugar
- 8 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 1/3 cups macaroni pasta, cooked
- 2 cups green beans, cooked
- 16 oz (480 grams) chicken, cooked and diced*
- 1 cup carrots, chopped
- 4 tablespoons onion, grated
- 1 pinch ground pepper
*You may replace chicken with 16 oz (480 grams) of diced, lean ham or 16 oz (480 grams) of flaked, canned tuna (in water).
Directions:
To prepare the dressing: Combine the yogurt, orange juice, honey or sugar, mustard, and ground pepper in a large bowl. Add the cooked pasta, chicken, carrots, and onions. Mix well.
Keep in a sealed container. Refrigerate overnight.
Serves 6
Nutrition value:256 calories, 20 grams protein, 31 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams fat.
