This morning I found myself contemplating how to make an avocado dressing that had some tanginess. As the weather cooled, I thought a creamy dressing would accompany raw vegetables nicely. I browsed the internet without finding any interesting ideas. A few thoughts swirled round my head so I decided to experiment..
When I was young, I never liked coleslaw because of the mayonnaise. I found the dressing too thick, rich and unappealing. When family friends served a coleslaw with an olive oil based dressing, my attitude changed. The key to making a really tasty coleslaw came when I julienned the cabbage with a mandolin on the smallest blade. It transformed raw cabbage from a jaw-grinding affair to a pleasurable, crunchy treat.
Here’s what resulted.
Coleslaw With Avocado Dressing
1/4 green cabbage, julienned
1 carrot, julienned
1 cucumber, julienned
1/2 purple onion, sliced and finely diced
1/4 red pepper, chopped
1/4 yellow pepper, chopped
a couple of pinches of sea salt
a handful of fresh parsley leaves, chopped finely (for garnish)
Dressing:
1/2 avocado flesh
juice of 1 large lime
1 tbs homemade mustard
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tbs raw honey
1/3 cup homemade soup stock (no salt or fats added)
juice from salad vegetables
several grinds of black pepper
Method
Julienne the cabbage, carrot and cucumber in a medium sized bowl. Add a couple of pinches of salt, mix through and let the vegetable sweat. This gives the vegetables a slightly picked taste. Chop the red and yellow pepper, red onion and mix through the vegetables. Put aside.
Prepare the dressing by putting all the ingredients in a blender and running on high.
Spoon all the vegetables in to a medium sized sieve and place over the bowl to release all the excess moisture. Let it stand for at least 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Pour the liquid in the dressing and run again. Taste and adjust if needed and add additional soup stock if you would like the dressing thinner.
Mis a couple of spoonful of dressing with several spoonfuls of vegetables, mix throughly, top with parsley leaves and serve.
Unless eating all at once, store the vegetables and dressing separately in air tight containers in the refrigerator so the vegetable stay fresh and crisp.
Tip:
The vegetable base can be served with different dressings, added to noodles etc.: they make a variety of dishes.
Have fun!