RecipeTin Eats x Good Food: Festive pomegranate salad

Name: RecipeTin Eats x Good Food: Festive pomegranate salad
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 10-12 as a side
Cuisine: Modern Australian
Ingredients: 7 big, leafy kale stems (you can use baby rocket but skip marination); 1½ tsp extra virgin olive oil; salt and pepper

RecipeTin Eats

December 3, 2021

The components for this Christmas salad can be prepped ahead and tossed together on the big day.William Meppem

easyTime:30 mins - 1 hourServes:10-12 as a side

This "show-off" salad calls for more effort than opening a bag of leafy greens, but there's nothing tricky about it.

Ingredients

Marinated kale

7 big, leafy kale stems (you can use baby rocket but skip marination)
1½ tsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

Salad

1 large pomegranate
12 cups (180g) baby spinach (or rocket)
150g gorgonzola, crumbled (or feta)
¾ cup dried cranberries
3 blood oranges (or other oranges)

Honey cinnamon walnuts

2¼ cups walnuts or pecans
⅓ cup honey
¾ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt

Dressing

3 tbsp pomegranate molasses
7 tsp red wine vinegar
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¾ tsp each salt
¾ tsp each pepper

Method

24-48 hours ahead
To marinate the kale, remove leaves from kale and chop into bite-size pieces. Place in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Scrunch with hands for 20 seconds and leave for 30 minutes or overnight to marinate. The leaves will soften.
Honey cinnamon walnuts
Toss walnuts with honey, sprinkle with cinnamon and salt. Spread on a baking tray lined with paper and bake at 180C (160C fan-forced) for 15 minutes, tossing once halfway. Cool, break up into smaller pieces and store in a container.
Dressing
Put ingredients in a jar and shake well.
Pomegranate seeds
Cut pomegranate in half and, over a bowl, turn cut side down and use a wooden spoon to firmly smack the back of the pomegranate. Store in fridge.
Christmas Day
Slice the peel and pith off the oranges and then segment. To assemble the salad, toss kale and spinach leaves with 3 tablespoons of dressing. Place half of the kale/spinach mix into a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with half the walnuts, cheese, pomegranate seeds, orange segments and cranberries. Top with remaining kale/spinach mix, then remaining walnuts, cheese, pomegranate seeds, orange segments and cranberries. Drizzle over remaining dressing just before serving.
This recipe features in RecipeTin Eats' make-ahead Christmas menu