Grapefruit & Avocado Salad

Grapefruit & Avocado Salad.

Two of my favorite things that you might not think to put together in a salad.

This recipe goes waaaaay back to my childhood. I’m not sure who thought of this combination, but this is a salad that we used to have when I was a kid. And yes, for you parents out there, both my sister and I loved this salad. Okra, not so much, but grapefruit and avocados, YES!

Here’s what you need:

Grapefruit, Avocado, Plain Greek Yogurt (or sour cream), and Brown Sugar

Click here for a Grapefruit & Avocado Salad Shopping List

This grapefruit came from the tree in our yard! It’s a huge (taller than the house), old tree that I just learned is an almost extinct variety called “Duncan” grapefruit. It’s a white grapefruit but any kind of grapefruit you have is fine.

A sharp, serrated knife is your best tool for working with citrus. Technically my knife is billed as a tomato knife, but it does a great job on grapefruit too.

Cut off the top and bottom of the grapefruit to create a solid base then go around the fruit vertically with your knife removing the rind and the white pithy part.

Cut as close to the fruit as you can realizing that you can always go back and cut away any remaining pith.

Then slide your knife between the little white lines that divide the grapefruit into sections or segments. Cut on each side and pop out the section of juicy grapefruit.

Look at all these seeds! This is the difference between old, local trees (what would now be considered “heirloom” varieties) and the hybridized fruit you get in the store that have been crossed and bred for bigger fruit and almost no seeds.

Yes, all those seeds are a pain but I guarantee you’ve never tasted a better grapefruit than these. Also, when I juice them I get almost a full pint glass of juice from each grapefruit. I love this old tree.

Divide your grapefruit sections between 2 plates. Hang on to all those juicy leftover parts for a minute too.

In a small bowl, combine ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt and 1 heaping Tablespoon of brown sugar. If you don’t have Greek yogurt, my mom always made this with sour cream.

Stir them to combine and then squeeze in the remaining juice from the pulpy middle of the grapefruit. You can also add a little water if you don’t have enough juice. You want this thin enough to drizzle.

Peel and slice a nice ripe avocado, cut it into wedges, and divide it between the two plates. Slice the avocado at the very last minute so that it doesn’t turn brown.

Drizzle the yogurt sauce over the top and serve.

This is so simple but so refreshing. It reminds me of a salad that might be served between courses at a fancy restaurant to “cleanse the palate.” Since we aren’t that fancy, we just had it with a good dinner as a nice departure from a green tossed salad.

It’s got that tangy, creamy, sweet, not so sweet thing going on in a big way.

Both grapefruits and avocados are in their prime in stores right now so get on this one right away!

Here’s the recipe:

 Grapefruit & Avocado Salad