Grapefruit and Fennel Salad with Avocado
January 6, 2010 • Fruit, Salads
I’ve been telling myself for 6 days now that I’m going to start eating lighter, but there is something about the 10 degrees and snow in Denver that’s making me want to curl up with a stew and potatoes (wait until you see the lamb stew later in the week)!
Fortunately, citrus is in season and I was inspired by watching Giada make a fennel and citrus salad a couple of days ago. Hers was a bit different, but this is my twist on it.
The star of this salad is fennel – something many people haven’t cooked with. Cooked it takes on a sweeter taste and makes an excellent gratin main ingredient, but raw it’s crisp like celery with a mild anise flavor.
It’s separated into two key parts – the fronds are the delicate wisps you see at the top of the vegetable and the bulb is the dense part at the other end. For this recipe, we’ll use both. See that core in the bulb? You’ll need to cut the bulb into quarters through that core so you can use a small knife at an angle to remove the tough core.
Then thinly slice the fennel bulb.
Segment the grapefruit. Forgotten how? Refresh your memory here. Make sure to catch all the juices while you do it and to squeeze the rest of the juice from the membranes too.
Next up some thinly sliced red onion – more or less than I used according to your taste – and some diced avocado. I used a whole avocado for four servings, but again, more or less to taste. I like more – and tell myself it’s ok because it’s a “good fat”.
And there you have it. Toss it together with the reserved juice, a little olive oil, and some salt and pepper and call it salad. I actually served this like a slaw over the top of a perfectly seared piece of salmon (also inspired by Giada and I’ll post that tomorrow. Hint: it’s glazed with agave.)
Grapefruit and Fennel Salad with Avocado
Serves 41 fennel bulb,trimmed and very thinly sliced
1 large red grapefruit, segmented, juice reserved
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
1 avocado, diced
1 tablespoons minced fennel fronds
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper, to tasteCombine sliced fennel, grapefruit, onion, avocado, in a medium bowl and toss gently to combine. Whisk together reserved grapefruit juice and olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Add dressing to salad and toss to combine. Serve over mixed greens or as a relish over fish.
Comments
10 Comments • Comments Feed
Victoria Young says:
My favorite kind of Salad is none other Potato Salad. it really taste yummy.*~-
June 10, 2010 at 10:02 am
Alexis Martin says:
my girlfriend has a grape fruit plantation in their backyard and we always taste some of the harvest.’;`
June 10, 2010 at 8:14 pm
Ashley Martinez says:
we always use grapefruit on our dessert and this is a fruit that is full of antioxidants too.`;;
July 20, 2010 at 9:26 pm
Esme Fisher says:
whenever my sister makes potato salad, i always eat them in less than a minute or so he he. i just love all sorts of salad. ,~`
July 28, 2010 at 8:25 am
Jasmine Ward says:
i like to make some Grapefruit tea at home, it taste really great“.
September 6, 2010 at 2:34 am
Money Market Account ` says:
we have a grapefruit plant on our home backyard and the fresh fruits taste so much better:.’
October 11, 2010 at 5:38 pm
Microwave Cart says:
russian salads are kind of addictive, my mom always make those russian salad at home.*”
October 13, 2010 at 10:36 am
Gel Pen : says:
potato salad and fruit salad are two of my favorite salads. i also like the tangy taste of chicken salad-*`
October 24, 2010 at 11:13 pm
Clifford Cliff says:
I sort of found your web site accidentally, but your site caught my eye and i also thought that I might post tell you that I enjoy it.
September 10, 2011 at 3:01 pm