Get tropical like a boss

Wow. Doesn't that look amazing? I promised you guys the recipe for a tropical salad, so here it is! My only regret is that I waited until the end of summer to try this deliciousness. Fresh pineapples were so expensive that I had to buy canned pineapple slices, NOT my preference. But it still tasted so wonderful and summer fresh!

Ingredients:
-Spinach (I always substitute spinach for lettuce, but naturally you can use romaine or whatever you want. Spinach is just packed with tons of nutrients, while most other lettuces are mostly water)
-Pineapple slices
-Mango slices
-Tomatoes
-Grilled chicken
-Vinaigrette dressing (optional, I didn't use any)

Grill the pineapple and mango slices either on a grill, in the oven (broil for 2 minutes on each side), or I did it using our George Foreman. Grill up some chicken. My sister Robin taught me to buy pre-made grilled chicken strips that you just throw on the stove for a few minutes. It's one of the best tricks in cooking that I've learned! Once everything is grilled, dice some tomatoes, spinach and throw the salad together. You could use a dressing but I prefer not to because it's just added calories, plus the juices from all the fruits and tomatoes are more than enough to compensate for vinaigrette.

Enjoy eating tropically!

Boring scientific note: Everyone knows that tropical fruits carry lots of Vitamin C. That much is fact. But there has been a rumor for a few decades that vitamin C boosts your immune system and prevents you from getting sick, especially with a cough or cold. The man who originally said this actually had very little scientific proof and few proven studies on that topic. Now there are actual well-drafted studies and tests proving that increasing your Vitamin C intake will NOT help prevent illness and will not boost your immune system. The most this vitamin can do is cut down on the amount of time your cold lasts, but only by a few days. So don't let vitamin companies try to trick you on that little rumor. But Vitamin C does do some awesome things! It's another antioxidant, which I talked in detail about in my smoothie post. Also, one form of vitamin C is called ascorbic acid. This type acts as a kind of glue that holds the tissues of your body together. That's why as nurses, we tell people with wounds to increase their vitamin C intake. Because we are trying to "glue" together their wounded tissues and the ascorbic acid is a huge help in doing that!