A Splendid Seasonal Salad

Nice alliteration, right?  Even with our record high temperature here in the Twin Cities this morning  – (51 degrees!), it feels like the holiday season is upon us.

As you can imagine, one of my favorite things about the holiday season is  cooking for family, friends and visitors.  I am equally happy to host the meal or be a guest. Either way, I like to have a few unique creations up my sleeve that I know everyone will enjoy.

This Pink Grapefruit and Pomegranate salad is just one of those dishes.  I made it again last night for a final photo op and it was gone almost before I could get the pictures taken. Even the teenagers and 20-somethings couldn’t get enough.

The salad delicious, festive and beautiful.  The components can be made a few days in advance and put together just before you put on the table.  It is also really light, which is a nice compliment to the traditional meals we know and love.

Think about adding this one to your recipe box – you won’t be sorry.  It will add a gorgeous touch to your table and/or be a welcome addition to your host’s dinner.

Pink Grapefruit and Pomegranate Salad

This light, festive, beautiful salad is perfect for your holiday table or to bring to dinner anywhere you go. The salad components can be made a few days in advance and are a snap to assemble when needed.

Servings 4 people

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 2 large Pink grapefruit
• 1 large Pomegranate or a jar of pomegranate seeds
• 1 head Red lettuce or greens of your choice
• 1/3 cup Grapefruit juice squeezed from the grapefruits
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest or 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp honey
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt or more to taste
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper or more to taste
• 6 tbsp olive oil This is the place for your best olive oil

Instructions

• Using a sharp knife, slice off the top and cut the peel off of the grapefruit. Be sure to remove the white pith to expose the grapefruit sections
  
• Over a large bowl with a sharp paring (or small) knife, cut sections from the grapefruit - slice the pieces between the white pith
  
• Squeeze the remainder of the juice out of the grapefruits - save all the juice
  
• Now for the pomegranate - let the fun begin!
  
• Using a sharp knife, cut the pomegranate in half - through the middle, not top to bottom
  
• Use your hands to give each half a little tug all around - just to loosen up the seeds (arils is the fancy name!)
  
• Now for the coolest trick ever - hold the pomegranate upside down over a large bowl and use a wooden spoon to WHACK the pomegranate all over - magically the seeds fall into the bowl
  
• Continue whacking the pomegranate until all the seeds have fallen out - It's a good way to release some stress!
  
• Remove any pieces of white pith from the bowl of seeds. You can do these steps ahead of time and refrigerate the grapefruit and pomegranate until you are ready to assemble the salad.
  
• For the salad dressing - combine the grapefruit juice, olive oil, mustard, lemon zest (or lemon juice), honey, salt and pepper in a jar with a lid - I'm a big fan of Ball jars for dressings.
  
• Put the lid on the jar and shake well - it's a KILKENNEY KITCHEN TIP for emulsifying salad dressings with one hand!
  
• Let the dressing sit for a few minutes and then taste and adjust the seasonings. Refrigerate the dressing for up to a couple of days - shake well before using.
  
• Chop, wash and dry your lettuce. I love red lettuce with this salad, but use any greens you like
  
• Place some greens on a plate and top with grapefruit sections and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds. Drizzle with the dressing and enjoy!
  
• If you are bringing the salad to a dinner or party, combine the lettuce, grapefruit and pomegranate seeds in a large bowl. Just give the dressing a shake and pour over the salad.
  

Notes

Grapefruits and their juice will vary in sweetness.  If you find the dressing too sour, add more honey until you reach a sweetness level that works for you.