Queen of February: Immune booster salad

Zazulete Ynn Anuca Romanta Ion

Dark, mysterious, cold days.
Cheeks pinched by burning winds.
Jingles and bells.
Frozen hands, feet and noses.
Snow angels.
I already feel nostalgic for them, but they are almost gone. And spring must not find us like weaklings. Like grumpy bears stumbling off our bed of leaves. Let's fight the Ice Queen with a special, magical salad that will restore our strength and vitality for crossing another bridge of seasons. Packed with 13 miraculous immune boosters (a mystical number of rebirth), it will not be just science for you, but art as well: the colors and tastes of the February Queen will become a synesthetic feast. You will become happy while preparing, eating, absorbing and remembering it.

INGREDIENTS (serves 1-2)
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50g rucola
60g smoked salmon
1-2 hard boiled eggs
50g goat cheese
1 small carrot
1 red pepper
½ pomegranate
Extra virgin olive oil or grapeseed oil
Lemon
3 tsp yogurt
½ tsp turmeric
Chili flakes
Salt&pepper

Rucola (arugula, rocket salad)
Cleanse and replace. Due to its antioxidant properties, rucola is a powerful detox cruciferous, cleansing the residues of the stagnant processes in our body after a long, more sedentary, slow-metabolism winter, and giving a boost to our immune system with its high content of chlorophyll, Vitamin C, copper and zinc.

Carrot
Orange Ninja. β-Carotene, our main source of Vitamin A, is one of the main stimulators of T-cells production, the bricks of our immune system.

Smoked salmon
The strength of the upstream fish. The salmon's life is an amazing story of survival, with the adult salmons traveling from the sea towards the very source of fresh water, upstream, as a perilous journey of more than 1600 km, where the successful female lays in her nest thousands of eggs for the male to fertilize, and then dies. After a few months, baby salmons, when strong enough, will make the same journey downstream, from one world to another, only to return again for the same cycle. We honor the salmon by understanding how precious its nutritious properties are for our immune system, with a rich content of Omega 3, protein, Vitamin E, D and calcium.

Hard-boiled eggs
Complexity and essence. Apart from being a major source of protein, fatty acids and a veritable vitamin complex (B complex, E, A), eggs from free range hens are also a rare source of selenium and zinc, which are part of the armor of our immune system. 

Goat cheese
Noblesse oblige. Goat cheese is another important source of selenium, along with the probiotic value of noble cheese mold, which acts like a "trainer" of our immune system against bacterial infections.

Red bell pepper
Surprise! Bell peppers can contain a double quantity of Vitamin C compared to citrus fruits, while red bell peppers are at the same time another important source of β-Carotene.

Pomegranate
Red killer. A most powerful antioxidant, pomegranate juice and seeds are also a killer anti-microbial, bacteria and fungal weapon, along with their anti-inflammatory properties. Do not spit the seeds! Together they make for a super food of the cold season, a red alert - first defense of our body, with their mix of antioxidants and Vitamin C, B, K complex.

Extra virgin olive oil
Liquid gold. An entire novel can be written about the history, uses and multiple properties of olive oil, with its multitude of benefits for our health. Among those, due to its powerhouse antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, extra virgin olive oil is also a classic immune booster and complex protector of our body on cellular, but also skin level.

Grapeseed oil
Secrets of the seed. One of the amazing characteristics of grapeseed oil is its high content of Vitamin E, leading to an increased production of natural killer cells, T and B cells, our tiny immune warriors.

Lemon
You know! The happy sour sun drop is pure Vitamin C, and packed with anti-microbial and antioxidant properties.
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Yogurt
White medicine. A small quantity of live culture yogurt every day, through its probiotic qualities, insures the healthy bacterial balance of our intestinal tract and stimulates the increased production of leucocytes.

Turmeric
Wonder. Curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric has been recently found to be a a major productivity enhancer of the whole range of white cells, while it has been used traditionally to reduce fever for millenia.
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Chili
Hot and cold. And finally, to spice it up, we will use this potent source of Vitamin C, antioxidants and β-Carotene, which contributes to building the mucus membrane protecting our body against bacteria and viruses. 
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Mix the grated carrot with whole rucola leaves, sliced red pepper, salmon and goat cheese and dress with a dash of lemon juice and zest, and olive (or grapeseed) oil. Or both.
Add the pomegranate seeds. 

In a separate dressing bowl, mix the yogurt with the rest of the lemon juice, oil, salt, pepper, turmeric and chili flakes. Add the hard-boiled eggs in the salad and the dressing and mix, or, if you prefer, you can mix the dressing in and add the eggs afterwards. Spice up the eggs with a little more chili.

Oh and guess what? It is the 13th today.

May you bloom like spring!