ABRAMS Dinner Party Spotlight On Salad Freak...Featuring Shrimp Louie Salad #SaladFreakBook #healthy2022 #healthyeating #saladlover

It's time to kick off the Spring 2022 edition of the #abramsdinnerparty blogging group! The first book being spotlighted is Jess Damuck's fantastic Salad Freak: Recipes to Feed a Healthy Obsession. Damuck is a recipe developer and food stylist who focuses on creating salads that are both delicious and beautiful. Salad Freak features more than 100 salad recipes that include a wide range of flavors and textures. There's literally something for everyone! Salad Freak features healthy salads...but it's not only about eating to feel good. The cookbook also focuses on combining interesting flavors to create satisfying meals that will become a part of your regular cooking rotation. I was very excited to feature this cookbook...because I'm definitely a salad freak too! Damuck and I definitely are on the same page with our love of eating all types of salads. I'm not exaggerating when I say salads are an integral component of my healthy eating plan...they've helped me lose more than 80 pounds since last May!

I read Salad Freak cover to cover before selecting Damuck's Shrimp Louie Salad to share with you. It's a perfect meal for Lenten Fridays...and it's also ideal for Summer entertaining. The presentation is colorful and pretty -- and the easy homemade dressing is the perfect accompaniment. Bottom line: this is my kind of recipe!

Shrimp Louie Salad

from Salad Freak

Ingredients (serves 2-4 as a meal):

Produce:

• 3 lemons
• 2 heads Little Gem lettuce
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 avocado
• 2 Persian cucumbers
• Fresh dill

Dairy and Meat:

• 2 large eggs
• 1 pound shrimp (16-20/pound), shell on, fresh or frozen

Pantry:

• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tsp. black peppercorns
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise [NOTE: I used lowfat olive oil mayo]
• 1 tsp. tomato paste
• 1 tsp. white vinegar
• 1 tsp.  Tabasco sauce
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Step 1: Prepare an ice bath. Fill a medium pot with water to 2 to 3 inches below the rim and add 2 halved lemons, 2 bay leaves, and 1 tsp. black peppercorns. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Add 1 pound of shrimp and cook until bright pink and cooked all the way through -- 6 minutes for fresh, and about 9 minutes right from frozen.

Transfer the shrimp to an ice bath and empty out the pot, then refill it with fresh water and return to a boil. Add the eggs. Cook for 10 minutes, then transfer to the ice bath.

Step 2: Separate the leaves of two heads lettuce and tear them into bite-size pieces; wash and spin dry. Arrange the lettuce on a large serving platter. Cut 1 cup cherry tomatoes in half. Cluster the tomatoes in one area of the platter. Cut 1 avocado in half and remove pit. Use a spoon to peel off the skin and cut each half into thin slices. Arrange on the platter. Slice 2 Persian cucumbers on the bias, and cluster in one section of the platter.

Peel the shrimp, leaving tails intact (if you wish). Arrange the shrimp on the platter. Peel the eggs and cut into quarters. Arrange them on the platter. Finally, select small pieces of dill to scatter around the platter, along with plenty of fresh pepper -- and lots of lemon wedges.

Step 3: Make the Louie Sauce and serve. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tsp. tomato paste, 1 tsp. white vinegar, and 1 tsp. Tabasco sauce, and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a pretty bowl for serving alongside the composed salad.

To serve, place a serving of the composed salad on serving plates...along with small containers of the Louie sauce. This salad is so pretty!

This salad is so good! Fresh organic vegetables, wild caught Gulf shrimp, creamy avocado...and a delicious homemade dressing. The Louie sauce reminds me a bit of spicy remoulade, but not as thick. It's the perfect dressing for this salad. This Shrimp Louie Salad is definitely going into my heavy rotation menu as warm weather moves into Texas! Hope you'll give it a try too!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of Salad Freak as a member of the ABRAMS Dinner Party blogging group. All opinions shared in this post are solely my own.