Lettuces

ummertime is salad time! Crisp greens are light, refreshing and low in calories, which works out well when you're dealing with warm weather and fewer clothes. Conveniently, they can help you meet--or even exceed--your nutritional needs, too.

There are over 40 types of salad greens, each with varying amounts of nutritional benefit, but they all contain good quantities of vitamins A and C, folate, beta-carotene, and lutein. Vitamin A, beta-carotene, and lutein enhance vision and help protect our eyes from cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. Folate is an under-consumed nutrient for many, but it is important for lowering artery-clogging homocysteine levels in the blood and for preventing neural tube defects in developing fetuses. Vitamins A and C, folate, and beta-carotene are all important for the formation of healthy tissue and skin, and therefore help protect our immune systems.

A serving of raw greens is 1 cup and has between 5 and 20 calories. Small leaves and baby lettuces are more nutritious than large leaves because when larger leaves are torn they lose vitamin C and other water-soluble nutrients. Try to eat a mixture of different varieties of greens, so you can reap all the nutritional benefits they have to offer. Māche, my personal favorite, contains about 20 calories, 100% DV for vitamin A, 50% DV for vitamin C and 20% DV for iron in just one cup. Arugula and watercress offer even more nutrition because they are actually members of the cruciferous vegetable family (along with cabbage, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower), which contain indoles, antioxidants that help protect against cancer. Remember the color rule, too: the deeper the color, the more nutritious the leafy green or vegetable. Those with red stems or purple edges offer even more antioxidants.

Greens are abundant all year long at Gelson's, and are sold in heads and in bags, both organic and conventionally grown and organic in bulk. The difference among them is really just a matter of convenience, but I recommend that you choose organic when it's available. Whichever you buy, make sure the leaves are crisp, free of brown edges or spots, and are moist, but not wet. At home, store your lettuce in the crisper, inside plastic bags with a few holes in them for up to a couple of days or until the expiration date. All greens need to be washed just before you use them, even the bagged stuff, to remove any grit and sand. A salad spinner is your best bet for properly washed and dried leaves. Paper towels are helpful for removing extra moisture, too. Whatever your preferred method, make sure your lettuce is dry, since dressing will not stick to wet leaves. Tear rather than cut greens if they're too big, and do so just before you eat them, to preserve their vitamin C content and to prevent browning. Dress and toss your salads just before you bring them to the table and don't be shy about experimenting with making your own olive oil and vinegar dressings.

This month, try my recipes for Organic Steak with South American Chimichurri Sauce, Spanish Watermelon Salad, and Chopped Basil and Arugula Salad.