Smoked salmon salad and avocado toast make for a fantastic weekend brunch, especially if you’re watching carbs. I love fresh spinach, especially in the spring. Its vibrant green makes me excited as I anticipate the fresh veggies that will soon be available again at my local farmers’ market. For this smoked salmon salad and avocado toast, I used the veggies I had on hand, but feel free to swap out for others if there is something you don’t like.
Make the two dressings ahead of time. The great thing about these is the recipes leave extra for later meals. For example, I made a creamy shrimp salad with poached shrimp and the Goddess dressing. My youngest kiddo likes to dip veggies in it and also uses it for a sandwich spread.
The pickled daikon, which is optional for the salad, needs to be made a day or two in advance. I fell in love with this daikon when my son brought home some Korean fried chicken, which had pickled daikon on the side. I get my daikon from a nearby large Asian market. As with the dressings, I always make extra so I have some on hand for later meals during the week.
The recipe for smoked salmon salad and avocado toast serves two, but is easily multiplied.
Ingredients
Green Goddess Dressing/Dip
- •22 ml (1 1/2 tablespoons) Green Goddess seasoning (available in shakers at some grocery stores)
- •30 ml (2 tablespoons) milk
- •237 ml (1 cup) 5% plain Greek yogurt
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) chopped fresh dill
- •1 scallion, minced
- •Salt
Lemon Vinaigrette
- •118 ml (1/2 cup) lemon juice (roughly 4-5 Lemons)
- •59 ml (1/4 cup) white balsamic vinegar
- •Finely grated zest from 1 lemon
- •30 ml (2 tablespoons) honey
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) Dijon mustard
- •One garlic clove, minced or finely grated
- •118-117 ml (1/2-3/4 cup) extra-virgin olive oil
- •Salt and pepper, to taste
Quick-Pickled Daikon*
- •1 medium daikon radish, peeled and cut into small cubes
- •Red pepper flakes, to taste
- •117 ml (3/4 cup) granulated sugar
- •117 ml (3/4 cup) white vinegar
- •7.2 ml (1 1/2 teaspoons) sea salt
For the avocado toast:
- •1 small ripe avocado
- •Onion or garlic salt (or your favorite all-purpose seasoned salt)
- •Red pepper flakes, as needed
- •2 slices high-protein bread, or other seeded or whole-grain bread
- •1-2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
For the salad:
- •4-5 handfuls fresh spinach
- •Half an orange (or other color) bell pepper, chopped
- •One third of an English cucumber, halved lengthwise then thinly sliced crosswise
- •One-eighth of a red onion, very thinly sliced
- •8-10 grape tomatoes
- •8-10 Kalamata or green olives
- •60 ml (1/4 cup) pickled daikon, optional
- •142-170 grams (5-6 ounces) smoked salmon
- •2.5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) lemon juice
*Allow 24 hours for marinating.
Preparation
Green Goddess Dressing/Dip: Put the Green Goddess seasoning in a bowl and add the milk. Let it sit for about 5 minutes to soften/bloom the dried ingredients. Then stir in the yogurt, fresh dill, scallion. Once it’s all incorporated, add salt to taste. It’s better if you can make it ahead of time and let it chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.
Lemon Vinaigrette: Whisk everything except the olive oil and salt and pepper in a bowl. Once those are mixed, slowly drizzle the olive oil while whisking it until it reaches the desired taste/viscosity. Then add salt and pepper to taste.
Quick-Pickled Daikon: Rinse 2 glass jars with hot water so that the glass is warmed and won’t crack when the heated pickling liquid is added. Add the cubed daikon and a sprinkling of red pepper flakes; set aside. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, vinegar, salt, and 355 ml (1 1/2 cups) water. Bring to a simmer and stir until the sugar dissolves, 1-2 minutes. Divide the mixture between the jars, making sure the daikon in each is covered; if necessary, add water. Cover the jars with their lids and allow to cool for at least 2 hours, up to 4 hours. Once cooled, refrigerate for a day or two. They will keep in the fridge for up to a month, although mine never are around that long. I use them in salads, slaws, pretty much any veggie salad. They are great by themselves as snacks, or a small side to your dinner.
For the avocado toast: Mash the ripe avocado and stir in 2.5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) of onion salt, garlic salt, or your seasoning salt. Toast your bread. While it’s toasting you can grate your hard boiled egg(s). Assemble by smearing the avocado mixture on the toast, top with the grated egg, and sprinkle with red pepper flakes.
For the salad: In a large mixing bowl, toss the spinach and other vegetables in 15-30 ml (1-2 tablespoons) of the prepared vinaigrette. Be sure to go light on the dressing because Green Goddess will also be added at the end. Divide the dressed salad between two plates. Top each salad with olives, smoked salmon, and a sprinkle of lemon juice. Finish the salad with dollop of the Green Goddess dressing. Serve the salad with the prepared avocado toast.
