Grapefruit and Avocado Salad

In my opinion Greek salad is one of the best on earth! It contains lots of vitamins from all the vegetables, good fats from the olive oil and even some proteins from Feta cheese. There is only one "but" about it. To make it good, you really need good, ripe tomatoes. Too bad it's impossible to find them in Amsterdam in winter. That's why after September I usually switch to green, lettuce-based salads. The problem with them is that they are... boring! I mean, what is so exciting about shredded lettuce, with some onions and olive oil - vinegar dressing?!

Luckily there is always a way to improvise a bit. This time I added an avocado and a grapefruit and it was great! Very fresh and juicy. To be honest I took the idea from a Caribbean cooking book (for one more time), and changed a bit the dressing. Stratis doesn't like neither the avocados nor the grapefruits. However, he liked the combination. The hilarious thing about it is that he thought that the red in the salad (grapefruit) was actually a tomato. Once I told him what it was he said: "If this fruit tastes like tomato, no wonder it's juice has such a bad taste". Well that's his personal opinion. I love anything made of grapefruit.

INGREDIENTS

1 large red grapefruit
1 large ripe avocado
5 lettuce leaves
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp sweet mustard (optional)
1/2 tsp dried thyme
salt and ground black and red pepper to taste

1. Peel the grapefruit, separate the pieces, remove all the membranes and place the flesh in a large bowl.
2. Cut the avocado around the length and separate 2 halves. Remove the pit. With a large spoon separate the flesh from the skin, then slice the avocado with a sharp knife. Place the slices at the same bowl with the grapefruits.
3. Cut the lettuce into large pieces and add the to the salad.
4. In a small bowl mix the oil, vingar, lemon juice, mustard, thyme, salt and pepper. Pour the dressing over the salad, mix well and serve immediately.

Another great thing about this salad is that it is full of vitamins, particularly vitamin C which is very essential during the winter months.