Pomegranate & Kale Salad with Maple Vinaigarette
I can’t even describe how wonderfully delicious this is. I used a good quality crumbly goats feta but you could also use cows feta to get the perfect salty taste needed to balance out the sweet and tartness of the pomegranates. I think this would be a perfect Christmas Day Side Salad – imagine it with some turkey, cranberry stuffing and some honey glazed ham. Or even with shredded turkey breast on boxing day. Mmmm…mmmm yummmm. Everything in this recipe can be made a day or two in advance, just chop and pop into bags or Tupperware and then put together on the day. Keep the dressing in the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature on the day.
Ingredients (Serves 4 as a side)
200g kale
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups cooked quinoa or wild rice
2 small shallot (French onion), sliced thin
1 pomegranate, seeds removed
120g walnut halves
100g feta, crumbled
Dressing
¼ cup raw apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup 100% maple syrup
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp Dijon mustard
To a large salad bowl add the baby kale. Massage the olive oil into the kale until it is glossy and tender. The kale should cover the whole bottom of the bowl.
Sprinkle with the shallots.
Add the cooked rice or quinoa to cover a quarter of the bowl.
Repeat the same with the crumbled feta and again with the pomegranate. I find the best way to get the seeds from a pomegranate is cut it into quarters and then peel it in a large bowl of cold water. That way the seeds float to the bottom and the white bits float to the top. Don’t forget to strain the seeds so they aren’t really wet.
To make your dressing simply blend all the ingredients together with a stick blender, taste, add more syrup, salt or vinegar as needed.
Notes: This salad looks great on the table as it is, I simply dress it just before serving and then give it a little mess up with the salad servers.