Fresh, tasty and bright, this gluten free salad has enough protein and healthy fats to saturate your hunger! Take it to the office for a light lunch!
Salads are one of the most important components of the Mediterranean diet.
On my About page I talk a little about the health benefits and the importance of the Mediterranean diet, but I don’t believe I make clear that this diet is more of a way of life, rather than a way to lose weight (though adopting a healthy lifestyle is the first step to shedding those extra pounds!). The Mediterranean diet is all about using fresh, local, and seasonal ingredients, lots of fruits, vegetables and greens, many herbs and spices, lots of olive oil, many legumes and grains, some fish or seafood and a little meat (my grandma would eat meat every Sunday or every other Sunday only!). And of course, you have to exercise (especially walk as much as you can).
So, here’s another salad recipe which you can also have for a light lunch! And no, avocados are not Mediterranean fruit, but fortunately today they are cultivated in Crete. So, I figured they would be a nice and healthy addition to this Mediterranean salad 🙂
Another thing I wanted to mention is that a few days ago I had the most pleasant surprise! The Hungry Bites was nominated by Feedpost as one of the Top 25 Best Mediterranean Food Blogs (#5 on the list!!!)
Needless to say that except the honor, this gave me a lot of strength to carry on, especially in a time during when I struggle to keep up with the blog and the rest of my responsibilities. Having a totally different day-job and posting recipes two times a week is a great challenge, but fortunately, blogging gives me so much pleasure that, at the end of the day, prevails any exhaustion 🙂
Click on this link to see the rest of the Best Mediterranean Food Blogs on Feedpost’s list!
Some notes/tips:
How I treat my avocados: Usually, I don’t buy too many, and the ones that I buy are not ripe. What I do is let them sit on my counter and check them once or twice a day by squeezing them very gently. When I can tell they are almost ripe (they’ll be somewhat softer to the touch) I store them in a zip log bag in the fridge and take them out the day I want to use them.
You can use pre-cooked shrimp, but fresh cooked shrimp taste far better and they only need about3 – 5 minutes of cooking!
Cook shrimp with their shell on, since this makes them tastier!
Don’t omit the dill!
Similar recipes:
The green smoothie that tastes good (it actually tastes amazing!)
Juicy shrimp saganaki
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- 14 – 16 medium-sized shrimp (with their shell and head preferably)
- 1 bay leaf
- Water to cover the shrimp
- Pinch of salt
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- 6-8 leaves of butter lettuce, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 avocado, chopped
- 1/2 onion, sliced
- 1 persian cucumber, thinly sliced lengthwise with a peeler
- 1/2 cup dill, chopped
- 8-10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
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- 1 – 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 5 tablespoons e.v. olive oil
- 2 teaspoons mustard
- Salt and pepper to taste
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Fill a pot with water and add the bay leaf and a pinch of salt. Bring water to a boil and add the shrimp. When shrimp start to take a pink color drain the water and fill the pot with fresh, cold water to stop the cooking process.
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Peel the shrimp and devein them if needed (if you use pre-cooked shrimp, skip steps 1-3).
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In a large bowl combine shrimp, butter lettuce, pepper, avocado, onion, cucumber, tomatoes, and dill.
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In a shaker, mix olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, salt, and pepper. Shake well to combine and pour over the salad.
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Mix well and serve. Eat!
This recipe makes 2 servings as a lunch salad or 4 servings as a side salad.
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