Kale salad with avocado. Gluten free, dairy free, vegan with Autoimmune Protocol introductions

Summer Kale Salad

Serves 4 people as a side dish

Ingredients

A large handful of kale leaves, torn with stems removed
Juice of 1 lime
Pinch of Himalayan pink salt
1/4 red onion, diced

1/2 avocado, diced
2 baby cucumbers, diced
1 baby cos lettuce, shredded

2 heaped teaspoons aioli (I use either the Naked Byron Foods Vegan Aioli or Roza’s Gourmet Aioli Garlic Mayonaise)*

Method

  1. Place kale, lime juice, salt and red onion in a mixing bowl and massage vigorously until the kale changes colour. Set aside while preparing other ingredients.
  2. Prepare avocado, cucumber and cos lettuce. Combine with kale and onion.
  3. Combine with aioli.

*Please note aioli is not autoimmune protocol elimination phase compliant.


This is a salad I used to make quite often when I was working in the city, near the Adelaide Central Markets and I could pop into the House of Health and get everything I needed for a delicious, nutritious lunch. Last night I shared this salad with my family along side a BBQ and it was perfect!

Many of the ingredients in this salad are in season at the moment. Eating seasonally has many benefits including:

1 // Eating a wider variety of foods to support your bodies nutritional needs as our nutritional needs change with the seasons (e.g. our immune system needs more support in winter than summer). Consuming a wide variety of foods is also great for the gut microbiome and reduces the risk of nutritional deficiencies.

2 // Improved taste and textures as fruits and vegetables have more flavour when in season.

3 // Produce is often grown closer to home when bought in season. This means less time between harvest and purchase resulting in a higher nutrient value and less impact on the environment from food transportation.

4 // It’s financially better as produce is generally cheaper to purchase when it’s in season.

5 // Reduced pesticide and preservative consumption as the transportation of out-of-season produce requires a little something to keep it fresh. This ‘something’ is pesticides and preservatives. By eating seasonal produce, the need for preservatives is reduced.

There are loads of great summer foods that are about to come into season here in Australia (a snapshot can be seen here). Farmers Markets are a great way to see what’s in season and support local farmers, along with your local Grow Free cart which will also be stocked with fabulous fresh, local produce.

If you make this salad, please tag me or send me a photo! I’d love to know what you think!