Winter Citrus Avocado Salad

One thing that I look forward to every winter is the plethora of citrus fruit that is available.  I love it all, from lemons and limes to grapefruit, oranges and kumquats.  The ruby red grapefruits and blood oranges are two of my favorite fruits because of their flavor and beautiful color.  They are wonderful to eat plain, in desserts, or even in salads.  The recipe I am sharing with you today combines the slightly tart fruits with heart healthy avocado and a creamy dressing.  I use hempseeds in both the dressing and for sprinkling for an extra dose of omega 3 oils as well as protein. Just 3 Tbsp of the seeds contains 10 grams of protein, so they are one of my favorite salad toppers!  This salad will leave you feeling light and energized but satisfied.

Author: Amy Lyons O’Neil

Amy has worked for Fresh and Natural Foods since 2006 contributing to the variety of healthful foods we offer. She graduated with a degree in studio art from Bethel University in 2007, but in her senior year of college, found that her passion was with the art of food. She later used her photography and culinary skills to create a vegan food and recipe blog, Fragrant Vanilla Cake. She has also written 3 cookbooks. She specializes in vegan and vegetarian recipes. Local, fresh and organic food has always been her focus in whatever she creates.

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Servings: 4 | Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Ready in: 15 min

Ingredients

• 2 small organic hearts of romaine lettuce, halved and ends removed
• 4 small blood oranges, peeled and sliced thinly
• 2 medium organic ruby red grapefruits, peeled and cut into supremes
• 2 large or 3 smaller organic avocadoes, sliced
• Dressing:
• 1/4 cup raw cashew or almond butter
• 1/4 cup shelled raw hempseeds
• 1/4 cup organic lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp raw honey or maple syrup
• Sea salt to taste
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• Filtered water as needed
• Additional hemp seeds for garnish

Instructions

Place one half of each head of romaine on each plate.  Arrange the citrus and avocado over it decoratively.

Place all the dressing ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until smooth, adding a little more water if too thick.  Drizzle the dressing over the salads, and sprinkle with hemp seeds before serving.