Mexican Salad With Creamy Avocado Dressing Recipes

MEXICAN SALAD WITH CREAMY AVOCADO DRESSING

Steps:

• For the dressing, combine all ingredients (except the salt) in a food processor or blender and process until smooth and creamy. Taste and add salt according to your taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. This can be made ahead several hours.
• For the salad, combine all ingredients in a big serving bowl.
• Toss salad with dressing right before serving.

CREAMY AVOCADO DRESSING

Steps:

• Place all ingredients into a Nutribullet or small food processor and blitz until smooth. (Inc Extra Flavouring Options)
• Use water to thin to just pourable consistency (so it's not super gloopy and thick).
• Taste and add the following to taste: salt, pepper, lemon, oil. Use as salad dressing!
• Keeps 3 days in the fridge without going brown. See Note 3 for how to keep even longer!

FRESH TACO SALAD WITH CREAMY AVOCADO-LIME DRESSING

Steps:

• To make the taco filling:
• In a medium saucepan, warm the olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the garlic, chili powder, and cumin. Cook until fragrant, stirring constantly, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and sauté for another minute, stirring constantly. Add the rinsed quinoa and water, and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, then cover the pot and reduce the heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook until the liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes (the quinoa might not be fluffy yet, but don't worry).
• Remove the pot from the heat and let it rest, still covered, for 5 minutes. Then, uncover and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Gently stir in the black beans and salt. Season to taste with pepper and additional salt, if necessary. Cover and set aside for a couple of minutes to warm up the beans.
• To make the tortilla strips:
• In a large skillet, warm the olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Toss in the tortilla strips, sprinkle them with salt, and stir. Cook until the strips are crispy and turning golden, stirring occasionally, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain the tortilla strips on a plate covered with a piece of paper towel.
• To make the dressing:
• In a small food processor or blender, combine the lime juice, olive oil, and water. Using a spoon, scoop in the half avocado and add the cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, and salt. Process until the dressing is nice and smooth. The dressing should be zippy, but if it's unpleasantly tart or difficult to blend, dilute it with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water and blend again.
• To assemble the salads:
• Combine the romaine and arugula in a large bowl. Wait to dress the salad until you are ready to serve, as the greens wilt fairly quickly once dressed. (If you won't be consuming all 4 servings of this salad right away, portion off the greens you'd like to save for later, and dress only the greens you intend to eat now.)
• When you're ready, drizzle the mixture with just enough dressing to lightly coat the greens (you might have extra). Toss until the dressing is evenly distributed.
• Arrange the dressed greens in 4 individual salad bowls (or dinner plates, if your bowls are on the small side). Top each salad with taco filling, tomatoes, radishes, crispy tortilla strips, and feta. Slice the remaining avocado half into long strips and place a couple of strips on each salad. Serve immediately.
• If you have leftover dressing, press plastic wrap against the surface to prevent browning and store it in the refrigerator for later. Leftover tortilla strips tend to become unpalatably tough within a couple of hours, so you might want to skip those and add a few crushed tortilla chips to leftovers.