Description
A festive and refreshing Christmas Side Dish Salad featuring crisp Romaine lettuce, peppery baby rocket, sweet dried cranberries, crunchy candied almonds, tangy blue cheese, and juicy apples, all tossed in a honey-Dijon mustard dressing. Perfect to complement your holiday meal with vibrant flavors and textures.
Ingredients
Scale
Salad
- 8 large lettuce leaves (Romaine)
- 30 g baby rocket
- 60 g dried cranberries
- 60 g candied almonds
- 30 g blue cheese
- 1 apple, cut into cubes
Dressing
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 50 ml olive oil
Instructions
- Prepare the dressing: In a bowl, whisk together the Dijon mustard, honey, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and pepper until smooth and combined. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while continuously whisking to create a creamy, emulsified dressing.
- Reserve salad ingredients: Set aside small portions of cranberries, candied almonds, blue cheese, and apple cubes to use as garnish at the end.
- Mix the salad: Tear the Romaine lettuce leaves into bite-size pieces and combine them with the baby rocket in a large salad bowl. Add the remaining cranberries, candied almonds, blue cheese, and apple cubes to the bowl.
- Toss the salad: Pour half of the dressing over the salad mixture and toss gently to coat all ingredients evenly.
- Finish and serve: Arrange the reserved cranberries, almonds, blue cheese, and apple cubes on top of the salad for a decorative finish. Drizzle the remaining dressing over the salad just before serving.
Notes
- For a nut-free version, substitute candied almonds with toasted pumpkin seeds or omit them entirely.
- Use honey alternatives like maple syrup for a different flavor profile or to keep the dressing vegan.
- Blue cheese can be replaced with feta or goat cheese if preferred.
- To keep the apples from browning, toss them briefly in lemon juice before adding to the salad.
- Prepare the dressing ahead of time and refrigerate to save time on serving day.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 180 kcal
- Sugar: 12 g
- Sodium: 150 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 10 mg
