Wheat Free Cilantro-Lime Kale and Avocado Salad
Bright, zesty, and loaded with texture, this salad is the kind of bowl that makes you feel genuinely good after eating it. Massaging the kale with a pinch of salt before dressing it is the move that transforms tough, bitter leaves into something tender and almost silky — don't skip that step. The cilantro-lime dressing comes together in minutes with olive oil, fresh lime juice, garlic, honey, and a touch of cumin, and it clings beautifully to every leaf. Creamy diced avocado, crisp cucumber, juicy cherry tomatoes, and thinly sliced red onion round out the bowl with color and crunch. Toasted pepitas add a nutty, satisfying finish that makes this feel like a complete meal rather than a side dish. Every single ingredient here is naturally free of wheat, so there's no swapping, substituting, or label-checking required — just fresh, whole foods doing all the work.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the salad
- 1 large bunch curly or lacinato kale (about 8 oz), stems removed, leaves torn into bite-sized pieces
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 2 ripe avocados, pitted, peeled, and diced
- 1 english cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced into half-moons
- ½ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- ¼ cup red onion, thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
For the dressing
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh lime juice (from about 2 limes)
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 1 tsp honey
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Place the torn kale leaves in a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt. Using clean hands, massage the kale firmly for 2–3 minutes until the leaves darken, soften noticeably, and reduce in volume by about half.
- 2
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, honey, cumin, salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes, if using, until the dressing is well combined and slightly emulsified.
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