Southwestern Chopped Salad
Gluten-free and Vegan, this Southwestern Chopped Salad with Catalina Dressing is fresh, hearty and packed with flavor! The Catalina dressing a variety of French dressing and is creamy (no dairy or nuts), sweet and tangy, a perfect compliment to the salad.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
Salad (per serving quantities in parentheses)
- 1 cup 1/4 cup walnut "meat" (or substitute grilled chicken)
- 8 cups 2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
- 4 cups 1 cup cabbage, chopped
- 2 cups 1/2 cup black beans
- 2 cups 1/2 cup cooked brown rice
- 1 cups 1/4 cup white onion, chopped
- 2 avocados 1/2 avocado, diced
- 1 cup 1/4 cup bell pepper (I used yellow)
- Catalina dressing to taste
Walnut "meat" (makes 1 cup)
- 3/4 cup walnuts soaked for 2 hours
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
- 3/4 teaspoon cumin
- large pinch - 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt or more to taste
Catalina Dressing (makes 1 cup)
- 1/3 cup Ketchup
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8- 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper 1/8 teaspoon will give a sweeter dressing/ 1/4 teaspoon a bit more "kick"
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 cup Grapeseed oil
Instructions
Walnut Meat
- If you haven't soaked the walnuts, soak them in water for 2 hours (more is better than less, as soaking in water helps with the texture)
- Drain walnuts from the water they are soaking in and place drained walnuts and spices in a food processor.
- Pulse 5-6 times until the walnuts are chopped and combined with the spices. You want it to be piece-y not minced too much.
- Store in the refrigerator if not using immediately. They store well for several days.
Catalina Dressing
- Using an immersion blender (my choice), food processor or whisk, blend all the ingredients except the oil.
- While mixing, add the oil and continue blending until well combined and creamy.
- Store in a sealed contained in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Salad
- I provide quantities for either serving 4 or individual salads.
- Place all ingredients in a bowl. Toss to combine. Drizzle with dressing and enjoy!
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You might want to think about the oils you are using for dishes. Grapeseed oil is very inflammatory and It is better to use Olive oil and avocado oil than Grapeseed. It’s an easy switch. Your food will taste better too and you will be healthier. Inflammatory oils like soy, grapessed, canola, and sunflower are not good for our health at all. Other than that this recipe is fantastic. I use a lot of your recipes and always change the oils you recommend. I also notice you add a lot of sugar to your foods so I substitute with Monkfruit too. Your recipes have great foundation but with a few swaps that could be super healthy too. Thanks for sharing great stuff!