Is Dark-Leaf Lettuce More Nutritious Than Iceberg Lettuce?

Asking whether dark-leaf lettuce is nutritionally better for you than lighter colored lettuce is somewhat meaningless, given that no lettuce is particularly impressive in the amount or variety of nutrients it provides. In fact, the most widely used lettuce--a crisphead variety commonly referred to as iceberg lettuce--is 95% water!

Nevertheless, it has been scientifically proven that dark-leaf lettuce provides more phytonutrients than iceberg lettuce (phytonutrients is simply a fancy word for "plant nutrients"). Dark green lettuce leaves also have more fiber, flavor and crunch than lighter leaves.

The most significant nutrients in dark-leaf lettuces are vitamin A and potassium. The vitamin A comes from beta carotene, which is converted to vitamin A in the human body. The darker the lettuce leaf, the more beta carotene it has.

Dark-leaf lettuces also contains more disease-preventing antioxidants than their lighter-colored lettuce cousins. Additionally, dark-leaf lettuce contains some vitamin C and vitamin K, whereas light colored lettuce does not.

My advice is to leave the nutritionally deficient iceberg lettuce on the supermarket shelf, in favor of any dark-leaf variety. Your garden salad will pack more of a nutritional punch, and it will taste better, too. Some of the best choices for dark-leaf lettuce varieties are romaine, arugula, red leaf, green leaf and radicchio.

A garden salad comprised of dark-leaf lettuce and an assortment of fresh vegetables, served along with a crusty loaf of warm French bread, is an ideal light meal for summer. Here's a great garden salad recipe to try, which uses two different types of dark-leaf lettuce: red-leaf and arugula. The peppery taste of arugula, along with flavorful feta cheese and kalamata olives, makes this garden salad distinctive and delicious!

MEDITERRANEAN STYLE GARDEN SALAD

1 small head of red-leaf lettuce, torn into pieces
1/2 cup arugula, torn into pieces (discard the stems)
1 cup chopped plum tomatoes
1 cucumber, diced
1 medium avocado, peeled, pitted and chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
2 red radishes, finely sliced
1/2 small red onion, finely sliced
1 cup coarsely chopped pitted kalamata olives
2 mint leaves, snipped
1 pkg. (4 oz.) Athenos Crumbled Feta Cheese
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
fresh oregano, snipped (dried will work if you don't have fresh)

Combine the lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, pepper, radishes, onion, olives, mint leaves, and half of the Feta cheese in a large salad bowl. Toss gently.

Combine the olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and a pinch of oregano. Pour over the lettuce salad and mix well. Scatter the remaining feta cheese on top and finish with a sprinkling of oregano.