Winter Citrus Salad

This salad is pretty enough to serve for a special occasion, but easy enough to make on a weeknight.  I adapted this salad from Thomas Keller’s “Little Gem Lettuce Salad” from Ad Hoc at Home.  I brought this over to my parents’ house on Christmas Day since I was in charge of the salad.  It seemed to get a good response, and I think it’s delicious!  It is definitely a nice way to incorporate citrus fruits now while they’re in season.

Winter Citrus Salad, serves 6

1 10 ounce container of mixed greens

Seeds from ½ of a pomegranate*

1 ruby-red grapefruit (Texas are the best!)

2 blood oranges

2 clementines

¾ cup walnuts, toasted

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Flat-leaf parsley leaves

Honey Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

Cut off the tops and bottoms from the grapefruit, oranges and clementines.  Stand each one up and use a very sharp knife to cut away the peel and pith in wide strips, working from top to bottom of the fruit.  Separate fruit segments.

Spread the walnuts out on the baking sheet and toast in the oven, turning the pan around after 5 minutes, for 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted.  Remove from the oven, transfer the nuts to a plate, sprinkle with salt, and let cool.

Put the lettuce on a large platter and top with fruit segments, pomegranate seeds, and walnuts.  Drizzle with honey vinaigrette.

*Note:  To remove the seeds from a pomegranate, cut the pomegranate in half through the equator.  Hold one half over a bowl and hit the back of the pomegranate to release the seeds.  Add the cold water.  The membranes will float to the top.  Remove any membranes from the water and drain the seeds.

Honey Vinaigrette

½ cup canola oil

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup champagne vinegar

3 tablespoons honey

Combine the canola and olive oil in a measuring cup.  Put the vinegar and honey in a blender or food processor to combine.  With the machine running on low-speed, stream in the oil.  Refrigerate in a covered container for up to 1 month.