Tropical Hearts of Palm Salad (Inspired by Paladar Restaurant)

As some of you may know, one of my favorite restaurants in the Annapolis-area is Paladar Restaurant. It has so many fun and exciting Latin items on the menu. Paladar shared with me their amazing sweet potato taco recipe last summer and I make them over and over again. This winter, I was inspired to make Paladar's potato, chorizo, and goat cheese tacos after seeing it on the menu, and they are incredible. I've never had a meal at Paladar that I did not absolutely love!

Yesterday I met a friend for lunch at Paladar, and I ordered the tropical hearts of palm salad and a bowl of gazpacho. I've had the hearts of palm salad many times before, and today I attempted to recreate it in my kitchen. It turned out pretty well - it's not exactly the same, but fairly close. The salad was really easy to make and it is very healthy! For those of you who don't know much about hearts of palm is,  they are a veggie that is harvested from the center of palm trees. How cool is that? I first thought that hearts of palm were the same thing as artichoke hearts, but they are completely different. Hearts of palm are grown in places such as Costa Rica and Ecuador. They are high in potassium, dietary fiber, and vitamin A. This salad also has other really healthy ingredients, like avocado, mango, and black beans. It's tropical tasting, refreshing, and it's filling enough to eat for lunch or even dinner. Enjoy!

Recipe for Tropical Hearts of Palm Salad
INGREDIENTS:
1 can of black beans, drained
3 stalks of hearts of palm (from can or jar), sliced 1/8-inch thick
1 very ripe mango, cut into smallish cubes
1 half of a ripe (but not too ripe) banana, cut very thin and then in half
1 Hass avocado, cut into smallish cubes
5 cherry or grape tomatoes, seeds removed and cut into small pieces
Juice of one large lime
1/8 tsp. of coarse sea salt
1 1/2 tsp. of extra-virgin olive oil
6 - 9 tortilla chips, crushed into smallish pieces

DIRECTIONS:
Put the beans, hearts of palm, mango, banana, avocado, and tomatoes into a medium-sized bowl. Pour the lime juice over the salad and toss well. Add in the salt and olive oil and toss again. Divide salad amongst 2 - 3 dishes and top each salad with crushed tortilla chips. 

Mango & Avocado Salad

Recently I posted a recipe for sweet potato tacos, courtesy of Paladar Restaurant. If you haven't had a chance to look at the recipe yet, I suggest you do! A really nice addition to the sweet potato tacos is this mango and avocado salad. This salad actually is a great side for many meals.
I love it because it is simple to make and super healthy. The most difficult part about making the salad is cutting up the mangos! I have had several close calls while chopping them; so take the extra time and learn how to cut them properly ahead of time.
I also love this salad because it is so bright and colorful. It makes me happy to just look at it, but of course it makes me happier while I'm eating it up! I hope you enjoy this salad as much as I do.

Mango & Avocado Salad Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
2 - 3 ripe mangos, cut in to 1-inch chunks

1 - 2 ripe avocados, cut in to 1-inch chunks (to be cut and added right before serving)
2 limes, juiced
2 tsp. of canola oil
1 Tbsp. of granulated sugar
1/8 tsp. of crushed red pepper flakes (leave this out if you don't like spicy)
Sprinkling of Kosher salt
Sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Make the lime dressing. In a medium container, add the lime juice, canola oil, sugar, pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Stir together well. Add in the mango slices, sprinkle the mango chunks with a little bit of salt, and then coat with the dressing. Cover the container and put in fridge for about an hour. Right before serving the salad, add in the avocado pieces and mix together. Enjoy!

***Original Recipe***

NOTE: Have leftover mango & avocado salad? Add in some canned black beans, and then use it as a filling in a tortilla. Makes a nice lunch!