Anti-Aging Recipe: Mizuna, Fennel & Mulberry Salad

Sweet. Chewy. Crunchy. Totally and completely addicting. Though it may sound like we're about to embark on a dangerous adventure down the candy aisle, the proud owner of these alluring descriptors is actually an incredibly remedial natural superfood: dried mulberries. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that the flavor of dried mulberries reminds me a little bit of jelly beans. The big old-fashioned style ones, you know?

Like many berries, mulberries are loaded with benefits, earning their superfood status by packing in around 130% RDA vitamin C, 20% RDA iron, 8% RDA calcium, and 3 grams of protein per ounce (all in a mere 90 calories!). But mulberries take their nutrition one step further by also offering notable quantities of an elusive polyphenol called resveratrol. Often billed as a premier “anti-aging” compound, studies have shown resveratrol to have powerful anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and – indeed – anti-aging properties, while also helping fight cardiovascular disease and enhancing tissue maintenance.

Did I mention they taste a little like jelly beans?

When fresh, mulberries look like a small blackberry, ranging in color from deep red to off-white, offering a relatively mild sweet flavor. Sun-drying mulberries condenses their sweetness further, transforming them into an incredible treat that’s wonderful when snacked on straight, and also a brilliant healthy addition to sweet recipes, like my Lucuma Ice Cream Cupcakes from Superfood Cuisine. I also really enjoy using mulberries in savory recipes from time to time as well, such as an unexpected addition to crisp, spicy, fresh salad greens – a combination of flavors that is truly gorgeous. Just like the way it makes you feel.

Mizuna, Fennel, and Mulberry Salad

Mizuna is a Japanese green leafy vegetable, which tastes like a mild form of arugula. If unavailable, arugula will make a fine substitute. Serves 4-6 as a side salad.

INGREDIENTS:

1 large fennel bulb, including fronds

1 large bunch mizuna, stems trimmed and removed

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

1½ tablespoons fennel seeds

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, or more to taste

2/3 cup dried mulberries

DIRECTIONS:

Trim off the fennel root and fronds, leaving a 1-inch handle on top of the bulb. Reserve the fronds. Use a mandolin to carefully shave the fennel bulb into paper-thin slices, yielding around 6 cups. Fill a bowl with an ice bath, and place the fennel inside for about 10 minutes to crisp.

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, fennel seeds, sea salt and black pepper.