Green Salad with Fruit and Fennel
By the Gracious Vegan
This salad is as healthy as it is beautiful. The mixture of textures and colors makes it a fantastic choice for special meals. With legumes, nuts, and fiber-filled fruits, it would also work for several days worth of filling lunches. You get an extra anti-inflammatory boost from red apples, dark grapes, pomegranate seeds and juice, walnuts, beans, celery, and dark leafy greens. The fennel adds a novel taste that will make this combination stand out against everyday salads.
Serves 6
Make the vinaigrette (makes about ¾ cup). Add the following ingredients to a small saucepan. Raise the heat to a boil, then turn it down to simmer, uncovered. Simmer for about 15 minutes until the juice is reduced to about 1/2 cup.
1 cup pomegranate juice (unsweetened)
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallot or onion
Once the juice is reduced, either add the following ingredients and whisk them all together in the saucepan, or (my preference), add the syrup mixture to a small blender with the following ingredients and blend until smooth. Allow the dressing to cool on the counter or in the fridge.
2 tablespoons almond butter
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Make the salad. Create about 7 cups of salad, using any or all of the following ingredients.
1 red apple, unpeeled, cored, sliced or diced
Thin slices of fennel bulb
1–3 stalks celery, sliced or diced
1 (15.5-oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
⅓ cup pecans, almonds, or walnuts (roasted or not), chopped
Purple, red, or black grapes, sliced in half or left whole
Pomegranate seeds
Mixed spinach and spring greens (or greens of your choice)
Cooked grains (farro, quinoa, brown rice, etc.)
If you will be eating all of the salad immediately, toss the salad with about half of the dressing and see if you need to add more. If you will not be eating the salad immediately, use the dressing only when you eat the salad, otherwise the greens will wilt. The salad (without dressing) will last about 48 hours in the refrigerator. The dressing will last about 2 weeks.
Timing: about 30 minutes
Gluten-free