I said that to Kyle an embarrassing number of times on our last Costco run. First of all, I was in a really lazy rut with food prep. But in reality, I’m more and more impressed with the Costco selection every time we go! Why should I make anything from scratch!?! [I kid, my love for the kitchen will obviously prevail, but my previous point is still valid. Costco FTW!]
This dinner came together in a matter of minutes – and how fancy does it look!
An avocado and goat cheese massaged kale salad with smoked salmon.
The kale is from Costco (it’s organic and even with all the salads and smoothies the bag still lasts a really long time).
The smoked salmon is from Costco (it comes in a 2 pack and it’s wild not farmed).
The grapes are from Costco (also organic).
The avocado is from Costco (probably one of the only places I’ll buy avo because it’s just too good of a deal and we pound through the stuff now that P is a green monster with the solids).
The nuts are from Costco (we eat jars upon jars, so it’s way more economical than the co-op bulk bins, even though they aren’t organic).
In fact, the only things not from Costco are the goat’s cheese and the dressing. But that’s only because I happened to already have Redwood Hill Farm’s chevre on hand. It’s my fave but Laura Chenel is a close runner up, and Costco has that in huge portions. My main issue with Laura Chenel is that the way it’s packaged is really annoying and seems to waste cheese that’s stuck in the corners of the plastic wrap. The Redwood Hill chevre is in a little tupperware (see above) that allows you to basically lick the inside clean so nothing goes to waste. Not that I’ve done that… [lies, we all know I have]
So basically the gist of this post is to tell you (a) I’m a lazy non cook now and (b) Costco is responsible for this salad, I just assembled it.
Ready for the ingredients?
- kale
- avocado
- goat cheese
- grapes, halved
- marcona almonds (or slivered almonds)
- smoked salmon
- balsamic glaze (I used Trader Joes)
Exact amounts and directions aren’t really necessary here I don’t think. Just rub the avocado into the kale so it tenderizes and wilts a bit. Then add in the rest of the stuff, toss with Trader Joe’s glazed balsamic and enjoy.
Notes/Subs:
You can vegan-ize it by omitting the goat cheese and swapping the salmon for another protein (or not!).
Feel free to use any nuts, walnuts and pecans would be fabulous. Or hemp seeds. I’m all about hemp seeds at the moment.
Same goes for greens – spinach, chard, spring mix, whatever you have on hand.
Dried cranberries or fresh blueberries could work in place of the grapes too.
So many options! Enjoy 🙂
Hardly anyone enjoys heating up the kitchen when it’s hot outside. I bet when temperatures cool down your cooking mojo will return :).
Our big Labor Day plan tomorrow is to make the trip out to Costco–I can’t wait to load up on my favorite goodies! I will definitely keep an eye out for that salmon.
Costco has it going on. Really. Wide variety of organic produce, excellent wines, line-caught fish, etc. They def get it.
that salad looks so scrumptious! I’m going to swap the salmon for some chickpeas….yum!!!
I have heard before that food Costco caries varies depending on the location. Someone told me that the Costco in Woodland carries the most organic products! You are so lucky! I miss that Costco! Mine doesn’t even have whole wheat pasta :(. Your salad looks yummy!
I wish! Our Costco does not have all these cool organics. Only spinach for fresh produce.