Forgive me for mixing cultures. I wanted to make an easy green salad in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. However, I was inclined to pair it with an Asian inspired dressing. I hope this won’t get me into trouble with St. Patrick’s Day purists. While some folks will enjoy corned beef and cabbage, I’m going to mark the occasion with lovely green shades of romaine, spinach, kale, cucumber and avocado. Hey – if you check out the Irish flag you’ll see I at least got the colors right with this dressing and salad combo!
Easy Green Salad
This salad is aptly named because it is so quick and easy to prepare. Just a few minutes of chopping and blending deliver a healthy meal. The nutritional value of the green veggies is enhanced by:
- beans
- almonds
- onion
- oranges
- tamari sauce
- chia seeds
- ground ginger
The combination offers plenty of protein, fiber and flavor.
Deceptively hearty salads like this are perfect for busy weeknight dinners. Enjoy!
Easy Green Salad with Orange Ginger Dressing
Ingredients
Dressing
- juice from 2 oranges about 3/4 cup
- 1 Tbsp. low sodium tamari sauce
- 2 tsp. chia seeds
- 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
Salad
- 1 handful of baby romaine chopped
- 1 handful baby spinach chopped
- 1 handful baby kale chopped (or choice of other dark leafy greens)
- 1/4 cup red onion chopped finely
- 1/3 - 1/2 cup english cucumber chopped
- 1/3 cup cooked or canned low sodium navy beans or chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1/4 avocado peeled and diced
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
Dressing
-
Add orange juice, tamari sauce, chia seeds and ground ginger to a hight-speed blender.
-
Begin blending on low and slowly turn up to highest speed.
-
Blend on high for 30-40 seconds.
-
Refrigerate dressing while making the salad.
Salad
-
Combine greens, onion, cucumber, navy beans or chickpeas, avocado and almonds in a salad bowl.
-
Top with 2-3 Tbsp. of orange ginger dressing.
Recipe Notes
Recipe makes approximately 1 cup of orange ginger dressing. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 4 days.
Note: I do not include nutrition information with my recipes because I subscribe to the theories presented in the book Whole and believe we should focus on eating a variety of whole foods instead of counting calories or keeping track of individual nutrients.
Do you mean tamari sauce?
I did! Thanks for catching my typo!!
Can I substitute the chia seeds with something else?
Hi Mari – you could try flax seeds and see if you like the flavor.