Serve with ripe heirloom tomatoes and fish, chicken, tofu or beans. Did you know that chard, a member of the beet family, contains more than 13 antioxidants, and one of those, syringic acid, according to recent research, is good at regulating blood sugar. Another substance in chard, betalain, helps us detox.

Don’t stint on avocados or good oils. This salad is meant to be luscious, and your body needs good fat!   

Serves 4 comfortably, and this salad keeps overnight just fine    Use organic ingredients, of course….

1 bunch rainbow chard	1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 cloves garlic, pressed	1 tsp good salt, 1 tsp black pepper
½ C extra virgin olive oil	1 C pitted, chopped nicoise olives
1 Tbsp lemon juice (more to taste)	2-3 Hass avocados, peeled chunked

Rinse chard and pat dry. Trim the stem ends, then slice stems and put in salad bowl. Lay three chard leaves on top of one another; roll them like a cigar. Slice thinly with a sharp knife. You can cut the long shreds in half to make it easier to eat. Put chard and remaining ingredients in salad bowl. Use two avocados if they are large, three if they are on the small side. Then toss with hands to combine everything well. Taste, adjust seasoning and enjoy. The chard salad without avocado keeps for days in the frig. You could make it ahead and add avocado when you’re ready to eat it.