Citrus Avocado Salad

I would like to think that Paul and I can go inside almost any restaurant to eat a vegan dinner. Life is miserable if you exclude yourself from restaurants or social occasions just because of your dietary choices.

Last night Paul and I were invited by our extended family to eat dinner at Ribs. A Steak House.

And the dinner was SO GOOD! The kids enjoyed their veggie burgers with fries. We had a Greek salad, sauteed mushrooms, (And 6 months ago I HATED mushrooms! Your tastes change. What can I say?) and a baked potato topped with green chile sauce.

We also stole a few fries. From our kids. Or maybe you could call it the parent tax; we paid for the food and require food taxes.

Tip: look at the menu online before you go. They will have something you can eat 9 times out of 10. However, at the restaurant, midst the noise and chaos it is really hard to find the hiding vegan choices on the menu.

Finding the hiding vegan choices from the quiet of your computer at home is bliss.

It was great to be with family and have Greek salad again; sometimes I get stuck in a rut with my same salad at home. It's important to mix it up. Try a new salad each week and shop for the ingredients.

Boredom should not be your reality. Neither should exclusion from social occasions.

I never new how to fancy-peel citrus fruit until I read this post from Joy the Baker.

It has changed my life. And now my life is yummier. And fancier.

Joy says, "Oranges are easy to segment. Once the peel is stripped, you just have to slice in between the natural orange segment markers/ skin bits/ pith marks… what the word I’m looking for?"

And here is what your avocado should look like, pre-scooping it out with a spoon. And please don't cut yourself when using your knive to whack out the seed. I have done this. Of all people, I have been stupid and pointed the knife downward toward my hand, and cut myself. Keep you hands clear!

We really love avocados. They are so filling, creamy and delicious. They are growing on Paul more and more every day. He may as well be an avocado tree.



Citrus Avocado Salad

Adapted from Joy the Baker
Serves 4 to 6 people

For the Salad:
1 large head of Romaine lettuce or 1/2 lb spinach
2 Navel oranges, segmented
2 ripe avocados, sliced
a handful of fresh, chopped flat leaf parsley is also nice

For the Dressing:
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice or 1 tbsp orange juice concentrate, or 1 whole orange, peeled
1 small garlic clove, finely minced
2 teaspoons honey or agave nectar
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon of soy yogurt
1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil (depending on your preference)
Salt and coarse ground black pepper to taste

To prepare the salad:

Coarsely dice and rinse the Romaine lettuce. Place in a large platter.

Segment the orange by first slicing off about 1/2-inch of the bottom and top. Slice down the sides of the orange, cutting through all of the pith to reveal the orange flesh. At an angle, slice in between the natural orange segments. A clean orange slice should pop out. Easy!

Halve and slice or dice the avocado. Sprinkle oranges segments and avocado slices over the lettuce.

To prepare the dressing:

Combine all ingredients in your blender. Blend until completely emulsified.
Drizzle over salad. Dressing will last, sealed in the refrigerator, for 3 or 4 days.