Thanksgiving Salad with Homemade Pomegranate Vinaigrette
Celebrate this Thanksgiving with a fresh, vibrant, and beautifully balanced salad featuring a simple pomegranate vinaigrette. This salad offers a welcome burst of color and crunch on your holiday table and complements classic Thanksgiving dishes perfectly. It’s easily customizable, so feel free to mix in your favorite add-ins like creamy avocado, salty nuts, or even a touch of cheese if you like.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
Vinaigrette
- ¼ cup pomegranate juice see notes for how to make your own
- 2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar or lemon juice
- 1-2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup honey or agave
- ⅓ cup unrefined cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
Salad
- 10 cups of chopped mixed greens of your choice*
- 5 large dates pitted and sliced or ⅓ cup dried fruit of your choice
- ½ cup pickled onions or shallots**
- 4 small red radishes sliced super thin or ½ large watermelon radish, julienned
- 1 large avocado sliced
- Toasted and salted nuts or seeds like walnuts, pistachios, almonds or pumpkin seeds or candied nuts (I used Diamond salted walnuts)
Instructions
- Place all vinaigrette ingredients in a jar with a screw top lid and shake until emulsified.
- Arrange salad greens in a large serving bowl and toss to coat with just enough dressing. Top with desired add-ins and serve immediately.
Notes
- To make pomegranate juice: Place 1 cup of pomegranate seeds in a blender and pulse a few times to release their juice. You don’t want to blend completely. Place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl or measuring cup and strain the crushed pomegranate seeds and their juice. Use a spoon to press any juice left from the seeds through the sieve. This will yield about ¼ cup of juice.
- *I do not recommend baby field greens for a buffet. They get soggy quickly. Personally, I like mixing different greens together, especially bitter ones (e.g. arugula, radicchio, endive, frisee) when there is a sweet element like fruit in the salad. But use what you enjoy and what is available in your area. I used 7 heads of Little Gem lettuce and 2 big handfuls of arugula.
- **Quick pickled onions: 1 small red onion or 2 medium shallots, thinly sliced 1 cup water 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar 1 Tablespoon granulated cane sugar 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt To make pickled shallots, combine the water, red wine vinegar, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the sliced onion and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the liquid and set aside in a bowl to cool.