Grapefruit shrimp salad

We were served this fabulous summer salad at Christmas in Canada a few years ago -- and have since become pros at making it. It is summery and citrusy and brilliantly colorful on the plate. It takes some time to segment the grapefruit and peel the shrimp, but the result is definitely worth it.

Ingredients (2 people):

For the shrimp:

• 16-20 large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/4 tsp. hot red pepper flakes
• scant 1/4 cup unsalted cashews or blanched almonds
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• juice from 1/2 a lime

For the salad:

• mixed salad greens
• 1 grapefruit, peeled and segmented (reserve the juice)
• 1/4 red onion, chopped
• 1/4 yellow or red bell pepper, julienned

For the dressing:

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. honey
• reserved grapefruit juice
• zest from 1/2 a lemon or lime
• freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions:

For the shrimp:

• Heat the olive oil and garlic in a pot, add the nuts and stir until they begin to turn golden. Add the shrimp and hot pepper flakes and cook for 1-2 minutes, until shrimp are done. Remove from heat and squeeze lime juice over shrimp. Alternatively, marinate the shrimp in olive oil, garlic, lime juice, and hot pepper flakes for 15-20 minutes and cook on the grill. In this case, just add the nuts to the salad as they are.

For the salad:

• Combine all dressing ingredients and shake well or mix in a mini blender.
• Place all salad ingredients on plates, and toss with dressing. Place shrimp and nuts on top, and serve.