Cantaloupe & Cucumber Salad
It's getting hot here in Abu Dhabi and my desire for both fruit and salad are on the rise. Depending on your carb limit, there aren't a lot of fruits that can fit in a keto diet. Low-sugar berries, namely blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries, are the most accessible. However, there are some other medium-sugar fruits that can fit in small quantities, and if your carb limit isn't very low - cantaloupe is one of those fruits. It has about 7g net carbs per 100g. Other fruits with similar carbs, and that you could use here instead are watermelon, Asian pear, and peach. Unfortnately, the amount of carbs in this salad may not make it accessible to everyone. My apologies.
This salad is simple, subtle, and summery. Feel free to add some fresh herbs (e.g. mint or cilantro) and top with a salty vegan cheese (e.g. feta or "goat") and some protein-rich nuts or seeds (e.g. pumpkin or hemp). I find the spice level of this salad quite mild, so you may wish to add some some crushed red pepper flakes or replace some of the jalapeno slices with a spicier pepper if you're in the mood for more of a kick. Make sure to pair this salad with a high-protein main because, while this salad is rich in many nutrients, protein is not one of them. Enjoy!
This salad is simple, subtle, and summery. Feel free to add some fresh herbs (e.g. mint or cilantro) and top with a salty vegan cheese (e.g. feta or "goat") and some protein-rich nuts or seeds (e.g. pumpkin or hemp). I find the spice level of this salad quite mild, so you may wish to add some some crushed red pepper flakes or replace some of the jalapeno slices with a spicier pepper if you're in the mood for more of a kick. Make sure to pair this salad with a high-protein main because, while this salad is rich in many nutrients, protein is not one of them. Enjoy!
Yield: 4 side salads | ½ cup + 4 teaspoons (140ml) dressing (2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon [35ml] per salad)
Salad macros (per dressed salad): 230 calories | 2g protein | 19g fat | 9.5g net carbs
Dressing macros (per tablespoon): 55 calories | 0.1g protein | 6g fat | 0.5g net carbs
Prep: 15 minutes
Storage: undressed salad, without avocado, can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. The avocado will brown once chopped, so is best added when ready to eat. The dressing can be refrigerated for up to 5 days.
Salad macros (per dressed salad): 230 calories | 2g protein | 19g fat | 9.5g net carbs
Dressing macros (per tablespoon): 55 calories | 0.1g protein | 6g fat | 0.5g net carbs
Prep: 15 minutes
Storage: undressed salad, without avocado, can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. The avocado will brown once chopped, so is best added when ready to eat. The dressing can be refrigerated for up to 5 days.
Dressing Ingredients:
- ¼ cup (60ml) light olive oil or oil of choice
- ¼ cup (35g) pickled jalapeno slices
- 2 Tbsp (30ml) lime juice (about 1 medium lime)
- 2 tsp (10g) Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp (8g) allulose or equivalent in sweetener of choice (optional)
- 1 clove garlic (3g | equal to ½ teaspoon)
- salt to taste
- 2 cups (320g) diced cantaloupe or watermelon
- 1 medium English or 3-4 Persian cucumber(s), diced (300g | about 2 cups)
- 1 medium avocado, diced (136g | about 1 cup)
- ½ medium red onion, very thinly sliced (55g | about ⅓ cup)
Directions:
- Pull all dressing ingredients in the cup of a bullet or immersion blender and blend to smooth.
- Toss the salad ingredients together in a small mixing bowl.
- Drizzle the salad with the dressing and toss.
- Divide the salad equally between 4 small bowls or side plates.
- Enjoy soon after preparing.
✎ Notes:
- Macros for this recipes are calculated with American national nutritional data (i.e. NCCDB & USDA entries in Cronometer) for all ingredients.
- Macro numbers are rounded. Numbers equal to or greater than 10g are rounded to the nearest whole number (e.g. 10g, 11g, 12g, etc.) and numbers below 10g are rounded to the nearest 0.5g (0.5g, 1g, 1.5g ... 9g, 9.5g). Any numbers below 0.5g are given as is (e.g. 0.1g, 0.2g, etc.). Calories are rounded to the nearest multiple of 5.
