Easy Avocado Apple Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
This avocado apple salad is one of simplest, quickest, nutritionally-balanced meal that you can make by assembling easy ingredients. Feel bloated from an indulgent meal the day before? Not in the mood to cook an elaborate meal? Toss up this salad, revel in its effortless goodness and thank me later!
What makes this Avocado Apple Salad fun?
This recipe checks all the health and nutrition boxes, is easy to make, and is quite delicious too. Energy and dietary fiber from the fruits and vegetables used, good fats from avocados, sesame meal & extra virgin olive oil, and an amazing micronutrient profile from all the ingredients.
Up until few years ago, a salad to me was penance to a slice (or two) of cake or abstaining from an indulgent meal – I’d believe that eating a bowlful of salad greens first would magically undo the effects of a lifetime of unhealthy eating choices and unfavourable lifestyle.
No more! As I began to implement healthier eating choices and forayed into my fitness journey, I realized that salads were often wrongly perceived as punishment! There is so much more to salads than merely sorry-looking vegetables piled together – vast possibilities exist in this area!
How to customize your own salad versions?
Yes of course, we have this wonderful recipe that you can rely on. However, if you wish to customize this salad, here are some ways to do it:
Use newer techniques
Wish to add some greens but find it boring to just include raw veggies each time? Indeed, you could add a wide variety of techniques like steaming/ sautéing/ marinating/ blanching/ curing etc to modify flavors of the ingredients you wish to use.
Play with textures
Wish to add some more interest to the recipe? As a matter of fact, it is possible to play around with seeds, nuts, grain flakes, legumes and even fruits to incorporate the crunchy/ nutty/ soft/ textures and the flavour profiles therein.
Make your own dressing
Let’s talk salad dressings, which is a whole world it itself – limitless options exist, depending upon your preferences and mood. Personally, I keep playing with simple vinaigrette/ jalapeno mayonnaise/ pepper/ lemon/ homemade hummus and tahini/ balsamic vinegar/ ranch sauce/ teriyaki/ thai sauces etc so there’s no scope for boredom. Check my Satay-style Thai Peanut Sauce too – I love how well it pairs with salad bowls!
Make a meal out of it
While at most times salads are meant to be a side option and paired with another snack or meal option, I sometimes try to make a salad a balanced meal in itself so no other meal is required. Add grains and pulses/ nuts and seeds/ legumes or even rice to make your salad wholesome and nutritionally balanced.
Want to add more protein?
Try adding cheese/ nutritional yeast/ wheatgerm flakes/ yogurt/ amaranth pops. Not only can this increase the protein content, but this can also make the dish more satiating as well as nutritional.
Looking for more easy, healthy salad options?
Try my:
- Chickpea Quinoa Feta Vegetable Salad with Lemony Tahini Dressing,
- Healthy Mango Panzanella Salad
- Amaranth Peach Feta Walnut Salad
Easy Avocado Apple Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 avocado sliced
- 1 lettuce small, torn into chunks
- 1 dragonfruit cubed
- 1 apple cubed
- 1 bell pepper red or yellow, sliced
- 1 onion small, sliced
- ½ cup carrots chopped and slightly blanched
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp wheat germ flakes avoid for gluten-free version
- 2 tbsp amaranth seeds popped (can substitute with quinoa puffs as well)
- 1 tbsp dried cranberries optional
FOR DRESSING
- 1-2 garlic pods minced
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp paprika optional
- 1 tsp pepper freshly ground
- Salt to taste
Instructions
FOR DRESSING
- Start by whisking together balsamic vinegar, salt, extra virgin olive oil and Dijon mustard together to a uniform mix.
- Next, add pepper, paprika and minced garlic.
- Consecutively add water or more oil to adjust the consistency for dressing. Set aside.
FOR SALAD
- First, heat a non-stick pan and toast the sesame seeds for mild crunch. Set aside to cool.
- Thereby transfer the sesame seeds to a mortar and crush them coarsely with pestle.
- Lastly, combine all the ingredients for salad in a salad bowl and toss well. Drizzle the dressing on top and mix.
- Devour!
Notes
- Take care to not burn the sesame seeds while roasting, as it renders a bitter taste. Be sure to toast them on low-medium flame on the stovetop.
- For gluten-free version – avoid using wheat germ flakes.
- For the dressing, avoid usage of garlic if you find it overpowering.
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