Disclosure: I was asked to participate in the National Cherry Month #GoTart Campaign as a member of the Healthy Aperture Blogger Network. I received free samples of tart cherries mentioned in this post from the Cherry Marketing Institute. I was compensated for my time. However, all the opinions expressed are my own.

I love a good asian style salad and yet haven't had one in quite a long time.

Many years ago when I was younger and my mother used to by an asian style salad kit. It was very tasty and one of our favorite things to eat along side any asian dish. Most commonly we would eat it with a bowl of hot and sour soup and some spring rolls. Yummy!

Fast forward a decade...

I've taken the basic idea behind that asian salad as I remember it from my youth and made it into a healthier, lighter, from scratch version.

First thing is first... dressing! I decided to go with my Skinny Thai Peanut Dressing because it's one of my most favorite dressings in the entire world. I substituted a traditional iceberg lettuce for a mix of an asian slaw and baby spinach. Why? Because cabbage and spinach are much more nutrient dense! For the add-ins I went with mandarine oranges and dried tart cherries.

Did you know that dried tart cherries are rich in vitamin A? True fact!

Sour foods (like dried tart cherries) also tend to be good for you. Why's that? Well, for fruits and vegetables, a sour taste is often a cue for more phytonutrient compounds inside!

Speaking of cherries... there's a give away going on right now for National Cherry Month and it's definitely worth checking out!

Healthified Asian Salad
TheSkinnyFork.com

The Skinny:
Servings: 3 • Size: About 1 1/3 C. Salad • Calories: 224.2 • Fat: 9.6 g • Carb: 34.2 g • Fiber: 4.6 g • Protein: 3.7 g • Sugar: 22.7 g • Sodium: 338.4 mg

Ingredients:
2 C. Asian Chopped Slaw Mix (Rainbow Slaw works too!)
2 C. Romaine Lettuce, Chopped
1/2 C. Dried Tart Cherries
1/2 C. Mandarine Oranges (In their own juice.)
1/4 C. Cilantro, Chopped
1/2 Lime, Wedged
1 Tbsp. Sesame Seeds
1/2 Batch Skinny Thai Peanut Dressing

Directions:
Toss everything together lightly, except for the dressing.

I like to serve dressing on the side since I'm told I have a rather heavy hand when it comes to it.

Divide evenly among bowls and enjoy!