By Rip Esselstyn
Ingredients:
1 bunch kale, stripped and chopped
1 large (or 2 small) avocados OR 1/4 cup oil-free hummus
½ lemon, juiced
¼-½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon red chili flakes
½ red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 small carrot, grated
½ purple onion, diced
11 oz. mandarin oranges (about 3 oranges)
Instructions:
- Throw stripped and chopped kale leaves in a large bowl with avocado, lemon juice, salt, and red chili flakes.
- Mash and massage the avocado (or hummus) into the kale with your hands until the avocado is spread evenly–like a dressing–throughout the kale.
- Stir in red bell pepper, carrot, purple onion, and mandarin oranges.
- If you can, let the salad sit for 30 minutes before serving; if not, dive in!
Rip Esselstyn is a mission-driven man. As a swimmer at the University of Texas at Austin, he was a three time All-American. As a professional athlete, he was one of the premier triathletes in the world for more than a decade. As a firefighter for the Austin (TX) Fire Department, he helped people and saved lives. As a friend to other firefighters, he transformed the way Austin’s Engine 2 ate to save firefighters’ health. Now, as the author of The Engine 2 Diet, he is teaching people the irrefutable connection between what they put in their mouths and their ability to reach their ideal weight and their ideal health. Recently, he has teamed up with Whole Foods Market as a Healthy Eating Partner to raise awareness for Whole Foods Market team members, customers, and all of America about the benefits of eating a PlantStrongÔ diet composed of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
Rip comes from a family steeped in medicine. His great-grandfather, George Crile, co-founded the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic, where his father, Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., was chief of the breast cancer task force and completed one of the most extensive studies ever conducted on the relationship between the heart and diet–proving that a plant-based diet can stop, prevent, and even reverse heart disease.
Rip serves on the Board of Directors for The Wellness Foundation, EarthSave’s Meals For Health Program, and the AllergyKids Foundation.
