Name: Crunchy Kale Avocado Salad + Ginger Carrot Dressing
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Cuisine: kale salad
Ingredients: 3 cups chopped kale, de-stemmed and roughly cut; 1 tablespoon avocado oil; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1/2 cup snow peas; 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts; 3 tablespoons puffed quinoa; 1 cup chopped carrots; 3 tablespoons avocado oil; 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar; 2 tablespoon agave nectar (honey or maple syrup also works here); 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

This is a close up overhead image of a white platter with kale salad with avocado, snow peas, an orange dressing, toasted pine nuts, and puffed quinoa. — Kale Avocado Salad is loaded with flavorful ingredients and a satisfying crunch! It’s topped with a deliciously sweet Ginger Carrot Dressing.

Whether you want this as a full meal or are serving it alongside a main, this salad will be a beautiful showstopper on your table!

The thing I love most about this salad is the CRUNCH! Yes the kale is crunchy enough in itself, but the toasted pine nuts give it a really delicious nutty crunch. Plus, we’re adding puffed quinoa to the top in lieu of croutons and let me tell you… they are delightful.

Ingredients for Carrot Ginger Dressing:

Carrots. Gives the dressing an amazingly vibrant color! Plus we love that extra beta carotene!

Avocado Oil. I love avocado oil, but feel free to sub in olive oil or another mellow vegetable oil.

Apple Cider Vinegar. Gives it some acidity. You can sub in another vinegar here if you need to!

Agave Nectar. For some sweetness! If you don’t have agave or don’t like it, you can also use honey or maple syrup.

Ginger. I know the carrots give this dressing its beautiful color but ginger is arguably the star of the show!

Lemon Juice. For a little zing! Some orange juice would work here too if you don’t have lemon.

Sesame Oil. For a little sesame flavor!

How to make the dressing:

It’s as simple as place it all in the blender and pressing start! I love the sweet ginger flavor and vibrant orange color of this dressing! It’s simple and so refreshing!

This is an overhead view of ginger, sliced lemon, carrots, and a bottle of oil. The ingredients lay on a white counter.

This is an overhead image looking into a blender. Inside the blender is an orange dressing. The blender sits on a white counter.

Ingredients for this kale avocado salad:

Kale. The base of this salad. I love using curly kale because it has lots of nooks for the dressing to get covered in and hide making for a super flavorful salad!

Avocado Oil & Lemon Juice. This will help soften the kale. We’ll massage it into the leaves and let it work its magic.

Avocado. For some creamy bites.

Snap Peas. I think these not only add more fun crunch but an extra veggie boost. For this salad, if you don’t have snap-peas or snow peas, you could probably sub in another veggie like a sliced bell pepper.

Pine Nuts. Mmm, my favorite! I love me a god toasty pine nut and so I showered this salad with them. Buuut, I totally understand everyone has different tastes and may prefer another nut, or have other nuts on hand. Feel free to experiment with other nut and seed option! Toasted sliced almonds or toasted pumpkin seeds would be my first choice if I need a sub!

Puffed Quinoa. This is such a fun addition to the salad. Not only are they super cute sprinkles to finish off your salad, but they add a really amazing crunch.

This is an overhead image of a white platter on a white counter. On the platter is a kale salad with snow peas, avocado, an orange dressing, and toasted nuts. Small bowls with nuts and quinoa are off to the side, next to the platter.

How to assemble the kale avocado salad:

De-stem. The first thing you want to do is de-stem the kale. Pull the leafy greens away from the center stalk. Discard the stalk and roughly cut the leaves into smaller, bite sized pieces.

Massage the kale. Place the kale in a large bowl and add the avocado oil and lemon juice. Massage the oil and juice into the surface of the leaves and set aside for 5 minutes. This will soften the kale and make it easier to chew.

Make the dressing. Blend all the dressing ingredients together and set aside!

Tuck. Place the kale on a large serving platter or in a large bowl and tuck the snow peas and sliced avocado into the top of the salad.

Drizzle. Drizzle the top of the salad with the dressing. This makes for a decent amount of dressing so eyeball it to however much you like, and serve the remaining dressing on the side in case anyone wants more.

Sprinkle. Maybe my favorite part of making a salad is sprinkling it with the finishing touches. Here we’re finishing it off with some toasted pine nuts and puffed quinoa.

This is a side view of a platter of kale salad sitting on a white counter. The salad is topped with snow peas, avocado, and toasted nuts. A small bowl of nuts is off to the side. A small pitcher of ginger carrot dressing is off to the side next to the salad platter.

More salad recipes to try:

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Recipe