Shrimp Avocado Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

Looking for easy ways to eat healthy? My go-to is salad with some lean protein on top. It could be a chicken caesar salad or something like this Shrimp Avocado Salad with Green Goddess Dressing.

What is Green Goddess Dressing?

What the heck is Green Goddess Dressing anyway? It sounds like something you’d eat in a 1960s-style steak house on top of an iceberg lettuce salad served by a waitress named Betty. Crackers on the side, of course.

Typically made with anchovies, mayonnaise, and sour cream, green goddess dressing is rarely dairy-free or vegan. Until now.

This version contains coconut cream as a substitute for the dairy. Old-fashioned or not, it will become one of your favorites. Use it on salad or as a dip for raw veggies.

Time-Saving Tips

To get this shrimp avocado salad on the table in a hurry, you can do a few things ahead of time.

Section the oranges and refrigerate. Alternatively, since Hurricane Irma walloped Florida and oranges are scarce right now, use canned mandarin oranges.
Make the dressing and refrigerate. Let it come to room temperature or it will be too thick to pour. Give it a shake (or stir) before serving.
Peel and devein the shrimp, then refrigerate. Don’t do this too far ahead of time or the shrimp may get mushy.
Chop the cashews.
Slice the radishes.

Shrimp Avocado Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

Creamy avocado, zesty radishes, bright oranges, and stir-fried shrimp come together in a salad topped with dairy-free green goddess dressing

Author: Adapted from Food Network Magazine

Recipe type: Salads & Dressings

Serves: 4

Ingredients

GREEN GODDESS DRESSING

2 oranges
½ cup parsley
2 scallions, roughly chopped
¼ cup canned unsweetened coconut cream
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper

SALAD

1½ pounds large shrimp (31-40 count), peeled and deveined
12 cups salad greens (I used baby red and green romaine)
1 avocado, chopped
¼ cup unsalted cashews, toasted and roughly chopped
4 radishes, thinly sliced

Instructions

MAKE DRESSING

Cut off the top and bottom of the oranges. Set one orange on a cutting board flat side down. Use a small knife to peel the orange by starting at the top and cutting down the length of the orange. Do this all the way around, making sure to remove the white pith. Repeat with other orange.
Slice between the membranes of the orange to remove the segments. Set aside.
Squeeze the juice from the leftover orange membranes into a blender container. If there's any juice on your cutting board, add that to the blender too. Discard membranes.
To blender container, add parsley, scallions, coconut cream, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Purée until smooth. Set aside.

MAKE SALAD

Place a double layer of paper towels on a plate. Set aside. Season shrimp with a few grinds of pepper. Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add half the shrimp and stir-fry until opaque, about 2 minutes. Remove to plate and repeat with remaining shrimp and 1 tablespoon olive oil.
Add salad greens to a large bowl and toss with some of the dressing. Place greens on 4 serving plates and add orange segments, avocado, cashews, radishes, and shrimp. Serve with remaining dressing.

Notes

Look for canned coconut cream in the Asian food section of your market.

Leftover dressing? Save it in a screw-top jar in the refrigerator. Let it come to room temperature and give it a vigorous shake before using.

Watching sodium? Reduce the amount of kosher salt you add to the dressing or cut back on the amount of shrimp.

Watching fat? Most of the fat in this recipe comes from the olive oil, avocado, and cashews and is monounsaturated (the good stuff).

Vegan? Prepare the recipe minus the shrimp. The dressing is dairy-free and vegan.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 449 Fat: 24g Saturated fat: 6g Carbohydrates: 20g Sugar: 9g Sodium: 528mg Fiber: 7g Protein: 44g Cholesterol: 276mg