This grapefruit salad is the right winter salad with a mix of spicy arugula, avocado, blue cheese and juicy grapefruit. Serve it as a aspect salad or add protein for a full meal.
I’m a Valentine’s Day child, so the vacation has all the time felt additional particular — crammed with chocolate, hearts, and sweetness! That stated, going out on February 14th is usually a trouble. Eating places are packed, menus are restricted, and the whole lot feels overpriced.
That’s why Isaac and I normally have a good time at house with a home made dinner, and this avocado grapefruit salad was born from a kind of cozy nights in. Grapefruit, in season throughout the winter, provides a pop of coloration that’s good for Valentine’s Day vibes. It’s an incredible aspect salad to serve alongside for a full meal.
The mixture of spicy arugula, creamy avocado, tangy blue cheese, and juicy fruit is a complete winner. Serve it as a starter, aspect salad to my my cottage cheese pasta or penne alla vodka or add protein like grilled shrimp, grilled rooster, or air fryer salmon to make it the star of your meal!
Why You’ll Love This Salad
- Fast and simple – With just some easy components and no cooking required, this salad comes collectively in minutes.
- A steadiness of flavors and textures – You’ve obtained all of it: candy, tangy, creamy, and crunchy in each chew.
- Good for any event – Whether or not you’re making a fast lunch, serving it as a dinner aspect, or including it to your vacation unfold, this salad matches proper in.
- Customizable – Swap components to match your preferences or what you’ve got available —it’s tremendous versatile!
Substances Wanted
- arugula – the peppery chew of arugula provides a daring, recent base for this salad.
- grapefruit – juicy and tangy, grapefruit brings a refreshing citrusy pop that pairs completely with the opposite components. I used a pink grapefruit for this salad, however be at liberty to make use of your favourite number of grapefruit.
- avocado – creamy avocado provides richness and balances the tartness of the grapefruit.
- walnuts – chopped walnuts present a satisfying crunch and a dose of wholesome fat.
- blue cheese – crumbled blue cheese provides a tangy, creamy taste. If you happen to’re not a fan, swap it out for feta, goat cheese, and even shaved parmesan.
- dried cranberries – candy and chewy, these add a contact of pure sweetness that ties the flavors collectively.
- balsamic dressing – a easy balsamic dressing enhances all of the flavors on this salad, bringing a contact of tangy sweetness to each chew.
Recipe Variations
- Make it extra filling: Flip this salad into an entire meal by including this apple cider vinegar rooster, grilled shrimp, or my air fryer salmon bites. For a plant-based choice, strive roasted chickpeas or baked tofu. You can additionally add quinoa or one other grain of alternative like farro to assist beef up this salad.
- Use a distinct inexperienced: If you happen to’re not a fan of arugula or don’t have it available you should use spinach, child kale or combined greens.
- Swap the citrus: As an alternative of grapefruit, use oranges, blood oranges, or mandarins for a sweeter citrus taste.
- Swap the walnuts: Swap walnuts for pecans, almonds, or pistachios. Or strive sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or hemp seeds for a nut-free choice.
- Use a distinct cheese: If you happen to’re not a fan of blue cheese be at liberty to skip it or swap it with goat cheese or feta cheese. Each are nice substitutes!
The best way to Make Avocado Grapefruit Salad
This grapefruit and avocado salad is tremendous simple to make! With just some minutes and a few easy components, you’ll have a recent salad able to take pleasure in. Right here’s methods to make this grapefruit salad recipe:
Step 1: Mix the balsamic dressing components or shake them in a jar till mixed.
Step 2: Add all of the salad components to a big bowl, drizzle with dressing, toss gently, and serve.
Brittany’s Ideas!
- Grasp the grapefruit – Take your time when segmenting the grapefruit. Use a pointy knife and thoroughly reduce away the peel and pith — no one needs bitter bites! Belief me, it’s definitely worth the effort for these juicy, clear segments. See my suggestions beneath on methods to reduce a grapefruit for this salad.
- Decide the right avocado – You need an avocado that’s simply ripe and smooth sufficient to be creamy however not so mushy that it falls aside if you slice it. If it’s underripe, you’ll miss out on that dreamy texture!
- Toast these walnuts – Toasting the walnuts takes their taste to the subsequent degree and provides a heat nuttiness to the salad. Simply a few minutes in a dry skillet makes an enormous distinction.
- Costume it up final – Wait to drizzle the balsamic dressing till you’re able to dig in. This retains the greens recent and prevents any unhappy, soggy bites.
The best way to Reduce a Grapefruit
You’ll need to reduce the peel off the grapefruit so there’s no bitter rind or pith. Right here’s how I like to chop the grapefruit for this salad:
- Reduce off each ends of the grapefruit so it has a flat base to face on.
- Stand the grapefruit up and slice off the peel and pith (the white half), following the curve of the fruit.
- As soon as the peel is off, maintain the grapefruit over a bowl (to catch the recent juice) and slice alongside the membranes to take away the segments. Segmenting the grapefruit removes the bitter pith and makes for a candy and juicy smoothie with none bitter aftertaste.
The best way to Retailer Leftovers
This grapefruit avocado salad is finest loved recent, however when you’ve got leftovers, retailer them in an hermetic container within the fridge for as much as 1 day. To maintain it recent, retailer the dressing individually and add it simply earlier than serving.
The best way to prep upfront: You possibly can prep the person components upfront. Phase the grapefruit, chop the walnuts, and make the balsamic dressing forward of time and retailer within the fridge till you’re able to eat your salad. Assemble the salad and slice the avocado proper earlier than serving to maintain it trying and tasting its finest.
Continuously Requested Questions
Grapefruits are in season from November by means of June, with the height season being from January-March, relying in your location. That stated, you may normally discover grapefruits yr spherical in most grocery shops.
Sure! Merely skip the blue cheese or exchange it with a plant-based cheese different.
After all! Whereas balsamic dressing is a basic alternative, be at liberty to make use of your favourite dressing. A citrus French dressing, lemon French dressing or white balsamic French dressing could be scrumptious, however olive oil with a squeeze of lemon juice would additionally work fantastically. Be happy to take a look at all of my salad dressing recipes for extra concepts.
Extra Salad Recipes
Make sure to try all of my salad recipes on EBF!
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This submit was initially printed on February 8, 2019 and republished on January 22, 2025.
