Avocado and radish over greens: a creamy, citrus-bright side that travels

A cooler bag and a fork used to be enough for a workday lunch. Packing food on the elimination phase that still looks and tastes right several hours later, that will not brown or wilt in transit, is its own small skill to build. This bowl travels well because the citrus in the dressing keeps the avocado from browning, so your desk lunch tastes like it just came out of the kitchen.

Avocado does double duty here, blended smooth into the dressing and folded through the bowl whole, delivering monounsaturated fat and magnesium, a mineral your nervous system and hundreds of other everyday body processes depend on. Citrus juice layers in vitamin C on top of that, and sliced radish gives a clean, peppery snap that stands in nicely for the black pepper the elimination phase asks you to set aside for now.

Keep the dressing in its own small container until you are ready to eat, so the greens do not wilt under it in transit. Before that first bite, take a breath and notice the color, pale green against dark leaves against the pink edge of a radish slice. Food that travels with you can still feel like someone cared enough to make it well.

Ingredients

Dressing:

• 1 avocado
• 2 green onions
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6 tbsp lime juice
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Salad:

• 1 avocado, chopped
• 4 cups mixed greens
• 4 radishes, sliced

Method

Put the first avocado in a blender with the green onions, orange juice, olive oil, lime juice, cilantro, sea salt, and ground ginger. Blend until smooth and creamy, then taste and adjust the salt.

In a bowl, toss the mixed greens, sliced radishes, and the second chopped avocado. Add the dressing to taste, toss gently, and serve chilled. For a main rather than a side, double the salad.

A word on what you are doing here

The plates on the edge of the meal do more than they look. A bright, portable side like this is how eating well travels with you, into a workday or a cooler or a long afternoon out. Pack it, keep the dressing close, and let good food follow you wherever the day goes.

*Adapted from acleanplate.com*