Healthy, scrumptious spring recipes

Gone are the heavy, hearty stews of winter.  With the warmer weather come lighter dishes packed with the types of fruits and veggies that are seasonal for spring.  Below, check out some of our favorite healthy and delicious spring recipes that you and your family can enjoy.

Soups and Salads

• Butter Lettuce and Radish Salad with Fresh Spring Herbs: This light, easy to prepare salad is a healthy start to any meal.  Butter lettuce and radishes are two wonderful spring veggies, and the avocado included in this recipe gives you a dose of heart-healthy fat.
• Warm Snow Pea and Chicken Salad: This delightful salad could work as a starter or even as a side dish.  In this recipe, the snow peas are sliced super-thinly, combined with an Asian-style dressing and shredded chicken.
• Asparagus and Radish Salad: Asparagus is a tasty yet low-calorie spring vegetable.  This recipe calls for the asparagus to be paired with radishes and dressed up in a sesame-soy vinaigrette dressing.  Want to add more to this salad?  Toss in some grilled shrimp and/or serve over thin rice noodles.
• Garden-Fresh Asparagus Soup: Don't be fooled by the creamy texture of this soup--it's still very healthy, since the creaminess comes from light coconut milk.  You can serve this soup warm or chilled.
• Spring Chicken & Barley Soup: This isn't your cure-a-winter-cold chicken soup--this is a healthy, delicious spring-ified version.  This yummy recipe calls for peas--another wonderful spring veggie.

Main Dishes

• Spicy Tofu and Asparagus Stir-Fry: This vegan-friendly recipe is healthy and delicious.  Consider serving it over fiber-rich brown rice.
• Wild Salmon with Ginger and Green Onions: Pair heart-healthy salmon with springy green onions for a tasty main course.
• Baked Chicken with Onion and Leeks: Baking chicken is not only easy, but healthy.  Onions and leeks are flavorful spring veggies, while the chicken gives you plenty of protein.

Side Dishes

• Spring Frittata: This egg dish incorporates a variety of spring veggies like asparagus, green garlic, and pea greens.  It also includes healthy, delicious fava beans--a good source of protein.
• Pasta with Garden Tomatoes and Fresh Mozzarella: This recipe uses olive oil (a "good fat"), fresh tomatoes and basil, and sweet Vidalia onions.  If you're gluten-free, fear not--you can have this dish too, if you substitute rice pasta for whole-wheat pasta.
• Grilled Artichokes with Raw Tomato Compote: Artichokes are fiber- and nutrient-rich.  Use tomatoes from your own garden to make the compote that accompanies the artichokes.
• Spring Barley Risotto: Barley is high in fiber and iron, so it's a healthful substitute for risotto's usual arborio.  This recipe incorporates spring vegetables asparagus and peas.
• Spring Vegetable Ragout: This light ragout, which includes spring herbs, leeks, snap peas and asparagus, is light and delicious as a side dish.  If you want to make it a main dish, serve it over pasta or polenta.

Desserts

• Strawberries & Vanilla Syrup: This recipe helps you spruce up fresh strawberries with a little bit of sugar and fruit juice.
• Stewed Rhubarb and Raspberries with a Meringue Lattice Crust: The meringue "crust" makes this a light dish, and the rhubarb and raspberries make it flavorful and tangy.
• Fresh Pineapple: Never underestimate the deliciousness of fresh fruit!  Fresh pineapple is a perfect treat--sweet, a little bit tart, and juicy.  Freshly-cut pineapple tends to be tastier than canned pineapple.

Interested in finding out more about healthy foods and recipes?  Consider talking to a nutritionist--if you aren't already connected with one, a service like Health Advocate can help you find a local, in-network nutritionist who can give you more tips on healthy eating.