Super Veggie Salad With Creamy Almond Dressing

Sharon123's Note:

I just bought a 3 pound bag of almonds from Sam's club and this dressing is a wonderful way to use them! I hope you enjoy! This dressing thickens up after sitting for a few minutes, so you could actually use less oil(3/4 cup) and the rest water or maybe apple juice and it would be just as good and less calories! The dressing also makes a great dip!

• Total Time: 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 6

Yield: 2.25 cups dr ...

Dressing

• 6 tablespoons blanched almonds, chopped
• 6 tablespoons water
• 1/2 cup lemon juice, fresh juice plus
• 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh basil, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon dill
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/2-1 cup canola oil (or vegetable oil)
• kosher salt

Salad

• 1 1/2 cups small broccoli florets
• 1 cup thinly sliced mushroom
• 6 slices red onions
• 1 large ripe avocado, cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• 2 cups grape tomatoes (or cherry)
• 1 head romaine lettuce or 1 head butter lettuce

Directions:

1. Dressing:.
2. Place the almonds and water into a blender or food proccesor and turn on high speed to purée. Add remaining ingredients, except for oil, and run to blend and whip thoroughly.
3. With the motor running, slowly pour in oil and run until the dressing is thick and creamy. (dressing can be prepared and refrigerated for up to 1 week.).
4. As stated in the description, you may use 3/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup water or apple juice(or liquid of choice) and get a little thinner dressing. Let sit for a few minutes to thicken up.
5. Salad:.
6. Put 1/2 cup of the dressing in the bottom of your salad bowl.
7. Add all ingredients, except lettuce, and toss to coat.
8. Serve:.
9. Put several lettuce leaves on each plate and add dressed salad. Serve extra dressing on the side. Enjoy!

Reviews

[Prose]

This was a really satisfying salad although my dressing came out a little thinner than I expected. Next time I will use more almonds and also reduce the sweetener (I used agave nectar instead of honey). It's interesting that The Wallaces wanted it sweeter, because I thought it was entirely too sweet. I also had a lot of leftover dressing. I agree with Maito that less oil could be used. The combination of veggies was really lovely. I enjoyed this as part of a raw food experiment, but it would also be a perfect starter when entertaining guests. Reviewed fro Veg*an Swap, June 2010

[The Wallaces]

I loved the combination of veggies in this salad! The dressing was good, but next time I will lower the amount of lemon juice and increase the honey, as I prefer my dressings a little sweeter. I used 3/4 c of oil to tone down the lemon. Thanks Sharon for a great salad recipe! Made for Holiday tag.

[Maito]

I really liked the combination of the lemon, almond and avocado in this salad. I used a third of the honey, and only a fourth of the oil, and it worked fine. If you are trying to lower the fat, I don't think you necessarily need the full amount of the oil.