Kids Eats

A mouthwatering recipe for avocado salad your kids will be begging you to make again

Sasa Mahr-Batuz and Andy Pforzheimer, cofounders of Barcelona Restaurant Wine Bar, share their recipe for avocado salad with hearts of palm and marinated roasted red peppers. Delicioso!

AVOCADO SALAD WITH HEARTS OF PALM & MARINATED ROASTED RED PEPPERS

Serves 4-6

Vinaigrette
1 ¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup sherry vinegar
3 tbsp. Dijon mustard
½ cup sliced shallot
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Salad
4 red bell peppers
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 scallions, both white and green parts thinly sliced
1 cup lightly packed, coarsely chopped cilantro leaves
1 tbsp. sherry vinegar
1 tsp. sweet smoked paprika
Cayenne
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 ripe avocados
One 14 oz. can hearts of palm drained
Extra virgin olive oil for garnish
Sea salt for garnish

To make the vinaigrette: In a blender, combine the olive oil, vinegar, mustard and shallot. Blend until pureed. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Set aside until ready to use or transfer to a lidded container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.

To make the red pepper salad:  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Rub the peppers with the olive oil. Lay the peppers on a baking sheet and roast for 12-15 minutes or until the side of the peppers resting on the baking sheet is wrinkled and almost black. Turn the peppers over and continue roasting for 7-8 minutes longer, or until the peppers are nicely charred on all sides.

Transfer the peppers to a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the peppers steam as they cool in the bowl for about 10 minutes. Lay the peppers on a work surface and scrape out the seeds and membranes. Slice the peppers into ¼” strips transfer to a mixing bowl and add the scallions and cilantro.

Sprinkle the peppers with the vinegar and paprika and cayenne to taste. Season to taste with salt and pepper. The peppers can be made to this point and refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Slice the avocado in half lengthwise. Remove the pit and using a large spoon, gently and carefully lift the avocado from the peel. Put the avocado halves cut sides down on a cutting board and make 5 or 6 lengthwise slices into the avocado from the fat end, being careful not to cut all the way to the tip of the fruit. This should leave the halves attached on one end.

Slice the hearts of palm into rounds. Spoon about 2 tbsp. of the vinaigrette into the center of each of 4-6 salad plates. Using a knife as a spatula, gently lift the avocado halves from the cutting board and put it on one side of the plate. Gently press on the avocado halves with your hand to fan them out on the plates.

Put about ½ cup of the sliced hearts of palm in the center of the plate on top of the vinaigrette and about ½ cup of pepper salad on the side opposite the avocado. Garnish each plate with a drizzling of olive oil and some sea salt.