The temperatures have been rising recently in Hong Kong and I’m in the mood for a fresh cool salad!
This avocado feta salad is another recipe inspired by my friend, Sonia, from when I lived in California. I remember having lunch at her house years ago (pre-children) and she would whip this salad up in no time. We would literally just split a big bowl of this salad and it made for the perfect meal!
It was this fabulous combination of creamy avocado, salty feta, roasted pine nuts, chewy and sweet dried cranberries, tender leaf lettuce.
You’d think that would be enough!
But alas no…this avocado feta salad was tossed with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette dressing that was the perfectly sweet and tangy!
I was used to far more boring salads back then…like ones of the garden salad variety with lettuce leaves, tomatoes, cucumbers…and a drizzle of Ranch dressing.
But when Sonia introduced me to this salad, I couldn’t go back!
Oddly enough, I forgot about this salad a while ago. I think it was after I had my first child and my brain went through a major hiccup and I forgot about the salad (along with who knows what else)!
Luckily for me AND you, I remembered this avocado feta salad again just recently!
Upon my first forkful, I was reminded of what an awesome tasting salad this is and I’ve literally been making it 3-4 times a week!
Oh, and the dressing? While I don't remember exactly what it tasted like from years ago, I think I came up with a mighty good version in my Sweet and Tangy Balsamic Vinaigrette!
Leave the boring salads and store-bought dressings behind and get on with this simple, flavorful balsamic avocado feta salad! You’re going to thank me for remembering this gem!
~ Lisa.
Spring Balsamic Avocado Feta Salad
Ingredients
Salad (all measurements are rough estimates and are flexible depending on what you prefer):
- 1 ½ cups Tender leaf lettuce, like red or green leaf or baby romaine torn or chopped
- ½ Ripe avocado cut into chunks
- 1-2 tbs Dried cranberries or dried cherries
- 2 tbs Toasted pine nuts
- 2 tbs Feta cheese crumbled
- Chopped apples or mango or other fruit (optional)
Balsamic Vinaigrette:
- 1 ½ tbs dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoon honey
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 4 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbs balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Combine all dressing ingredients and mix well with a whisk. Adjust ingredients amounts to taste.
- Combine all salad ingredients on a plate or in a bowl.
- If serving salad from a bowl, toss ingredient with balsamic vinaigrette, using 1 tbs of dressing to start. Add more to taste, if necessary.
- If serving salad on a plate, drizzle balsamic vinaigrette over the salad, starting with 1 tbs and adjusting to taste.
- Store any leftover dressing in the fridge.
Notes
- As I mentioned above, there are no precise measurements for the salad ingredients. That's what makes it so easy! Use the measurements given as a rough idea, but all you need to do is just eyeball the amounts depending on how many people you're serving. It's all good!
- The recipe included here for the balsamic vinaigrette makes more than you need for 1 serving. Store any leftover dressing in a jar in the fridge for 1 week.
- Drizzle the balsamic vinaigrette over each serving of salad, or toss the entire salad with some dressing before plating.
- Add in other chopped nuts or mix in some fresh fruit.
- Also tastes great with grilled chicken, steak, shrimp, or salmon!
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