Shrimp Tex-Mex Salad with Vegan Creamy Cilantro Dressing

I’m at it again with the Mexican/Spanish/Latin food. Must be Cinco de Mayo – I just can’t help myself! I think I’m trying to convince myself that it is warm enough here in Chicago to eat this outdoors.

I had this dressing on one of my Pinterest boards for ever, and now that I’ve finally made it, I don’t know what I ever did before! I have seriously been putting it on everything. If you don’t usually make your own salad dressing, give this one a try – sooo much better than bottled, and it only takes a few minutes!

This salad is pretty versatile, so try your own variation. If you don’t like tomatoes, you can be friends with Ruby. Girl ate a receipt yesterday on our walk, but wouldn’t touch a tomato that fell on the ground while I was making this.

That’s her “It wasn’t organic, ma!” face.

Shrimp Tex-Mex Salad, serves 2, inspired by this recipe
-1 T. olive oil
-1/2 lb. shrimp (I bought cooked shrimp because the little guys were on sale, and it makes preparation a little faster, but raw shrimp will work too!)
-1 T taco seasoning
-1 head romaine
-1/2 avocado
-1 ear corn
-2 cups cherry tomatoes
-2 green onions
-1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Creamy Cilantro-Lime-Avocado Dressing (inspired by this post, makes about a 1 1/2 cups):
-1/4 c. rice wine vinegar
-1/4 c. lime juice (juice of 2 limes)
-2 cloves garlic
-1/2 c. canola oil
-1/2 cup fresh cilantro
-1/2 avocado
-1/2 t. sea salt

1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the shrimp. Sprinkle some taco seasoning on the shrimp and stir for about a minute, until coated in seasoning. Remove from heat.

2. Chop your romaine, tomatoes, avocado, and remove corn kernels from cob.

3. Make dressing: add all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend for about 30 seconds to a minute.

4. Add all salad ingredients to a bowl and serve with dressing!