Sunshine Citrus Avocado Salad | Gimme Some Oven

Easy20 minsQuick

This Sunshine Citrus Avocado Salad recipe is super-refreshing and light and delicious, especially thanks to the addition of lots and lots of fresh herbs.

A few weeks ago, we brought home a big batch of fresh herbs to plant in our cute little Spanish window boxes for the season.  And since then, I’ve become so obsessed with going outside to snip off a few sprigs to toss into each meal that we already had to go back to the garden store this weekend to restock!  Ha, can’t stop won’t stop with putting fresh herbs on everything this spring.

Especially when it comes to salads. ♡

I’ve been adding a big handful of fresh mint, basil, dill, parsley and/or cilantro to pretty much every single salad that we’ve made this season.  (And given that we make a green salad for dinner each night, ha, I suppose it makes sense why our supply is running low.)  We’re completely hooked, though.  Fresh herbs just have a magical way of brightening up any flavor profile in a salad, and making it feel extra light and fresh and spring-y.  And I can vouch especially that they make all the difference in this yummy, sunny, simple citrus avocado green salad.

Barclay and I have been hooked on this salad all month — making some version of it at least once or twice a week for dinner — and we’re still nowhere close to being tired of it.  Made simply with juicy citrus (grapefruit, orange or even mango would all work well), creamy avocado, crisp red onion, toasted nuts, your choice of greens, a quick sesame dressing, and lots of fresh mint and basil, this salad works great as either a bright side dish or a nice healthy entree.  We especially love roasting up some salmon filets to go with it, which is also wonderfully quick and light.  Or, if you happen to be looking for some salad inspiration for Cinco de Mayo this coming weekend, we’ve also tried making this salad with pepitas and the cumin-lime dressing from this recipe, and can vouch that the citrus-avocado combo works great with a Mexican twist as well.

However you choose to make yours, my recommendation is simply to go big on the fresh herbs here.  ‘Tis the season, and I promise you won’t regret it!

Weekend balcony gardening here in Barcelona. ♡

Citrus Avocado Salad Ingredients:

To make this citrus avocado salad recipe, you will need:

• Citrus: I’m partial to tangy grapefruit here.  But we’ve also made this salad with orange and mango, and all are delicious!
• Avocado: The more, the merrier, in my opinion.
• Nuts: I love the crunch of toasted almonds (sliced or slivered) in this salad.  But pepitas, sunflower seeds, peanuts or cashews would also be delicious.
• Red onion: You know me, I always like some super-thinly-sliced red onion in my salads.
• Salad greens: We usually use a bag of mixed greens, but feel free to use whatever you prefer.
• Herbs: I recommend chopping up a big handful each of fresh mint and fresh basil (or even better, fresh Thai basil) for this salad.  But if you just have one herb to add, that’ll still be great!
• Sesame dressing: I usually use my everyday sesame dressing, made with oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup (or honey), sesame oil, ground ginger and black pepper.  But if you would like a different twist, this salad also tastes great with my everyday cumin-lime dressing too!

How To Make This Salad:

To make this salad, simply:

1. Make your dressing.  Whisk all of the ingredients together in a small bowl until combined.  Or — my preferred method — just add them to a mason jar and shake-shake-shake until the dressing is ready to go.  Taste and add in extra maple syrup or honey if you would like a sweeter dressing.
2. Mix the salad.  Then combine all of your salad ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Drizzle evenly with the dressing and toss until combined.
3. And…serve!  You’re going to love it!

Possible Variations:

This citrus salad recipe is super-flexible if you would like to mix things up.  For example, feel free to…

• Add a protein: Cooked chicken, steak , pork, shrimp, salmon, or tofu would all be great in this salad (or served alongside it).
• Add extra fresh veggies: Such as cucumber, carrots, bell peppers, radishes, edamame or sugar snap peas.
• Add crispy wonton strips: Always good for extra crunch.
• Add a kick: If you would like your salad to be a bit spicier, add some sriracha or hot chili oil to the dressing. Or add a few sliced Thai bird chiles or serrano peppers to the salad.
• Use different nuts: Such as pepitas, sunflower seeds, peanuts or cashews.
• Use a different dressing: As I mentioned above, this salad is also great with my everyday cumin-lime dressing (and pepitas), if you would like to give the salad more of a Mexican twist.

Yield: 4 servings

Sunshine Citrus Avocado Salad

This Sunshine Citrus Avocado Salad recipe is super-refreshing and light and delicious, especially thanks to the addition of lots and lots of fresh herbs.  See notes above for possible ingredient add-ins and substitutions!

Total Time:20 mins

Prep Time:20 mins

Cook Time:0 mins

Ingredients:

Salad Ingredients:

• 1 (5-ounce) bag mixed greens
• 2 large ruby-red grapefruits (or oranges or mangoes), peeled and chopped
• 1 large ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
• 1 handful fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 handful fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
• half of a medium red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted
• optional topping: toasted sesame seeds

Sesame Vinaigrette Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons avocado oil (or olive oil, or any other mild-flavored oil)
• 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce*
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1-2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey
• 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon each: ground ginger and garlic powder
• sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. To Make The Vinaigrette: Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl (or shake together in a mason jar) until combined.  Taste and add additional sweetener if desired.  Use immediately or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 3 days.
2. To Make The Salad: Combine all ingredients in a large salad bowl, drizzle evenly with the vinaigrette, and toss until evenly combined.  Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds plus an extra twist of freshly-cracked black pepper.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

Difficulty: EasyCategory: Quick

All images and text ©Gimme Some Oven