Winter Snow Salad

It's Winter, but you want salad. What's a salad-craving yet Spleen-health* conscious individual to do? Make a salad full of hearty, Winter-y foods of course! This snow salad (note: my salad plate is actually sitting in a pile of snow in the above picture) contains:

Lightly Steamed Kale

Chopped Figs

Whole Hazelnuts

Crumbled Goat Cheese

Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar, and Sea Salt

*Remember that the Spleen prefers warm foods during cold months; therefore ice-y iceberg lettuce salads are a no-go. But this salad is OK! Kale is a Winter vegetable and is thus a great base for salads in colder months. You can also lightly steam it to help with digestion.  Figs (and dates) are warming fruits, according to Chinese medicine (TCM) theories. As for goat cheese, it is not as "cooling" as Cow dairy in TCM. Lastly, nuts are neutral and good all year round.