Serve this refreshing festive Christmas salad with your holiday menu! It’s a beautiful wintery salad full of mixed greens, orange slices, juicy pomegranates, red onion, candied pecans, and crumbled feta cheese. All tossed together in an orange vinaigrette.
I love adding the option of a healthy salad to my holiday menu. It balances out all of the delicious food and treats we enjoy at Christmas time. Bring this broccoli apple salad, my mouthwatering spinach salad, or this fresh Christmas fruit salad to your next holiday party! You’ll be surprised at how quickly they are devoured because everyone loves the healthier option.
Beautiful Christmas Salad
This beautiful and healthy Christmas salad is everything your Christmas dinner needs. Fresh greens, juicy fruit, candied pecans, and savory cheese all pair perfectly with the sweet orange vinaigrette. It’s bursting with the brightest flavors and colors making it the prettiest salad at the party.
The holidays are full of parties and gatherings that bring delicious food and loved ones together. We have so many traditions that involve our favorite food at Christmas time. My kids always look forward to making Grinch cookies because it’s so fun and festive! It’s also tradition to make our favorite breakfast casserole for Christmas morning, and Beef Wellington for Christmas dinner.
Christmas Salad Ingredients
Full of fresh and festive ingredients, this Christmas salad is everything your holiday menu needs. You are going to love the flavors and textures bursting in every bite! And the orange vinaigrette takes this salad over the top!
Salad
- Mixed Greens: Spinach, arugula, or a spring mix of lettuces. I love mixing greens because of the different textures.
- Red onion: The flavor of onion is always a perfect salad ingredient.
- Pomegranate Seeds: Juicy and seasonal pomegranate seeds burst in every bite. Buy a container of pomegranate arils in the produce section to make it easy!
- Feta Cheese: Crumbled feta is my favorite, but try blue cheese, goat cheese, or parmesan cheese.
- Candied Pecans: Sweet candied pecans add great texture and crunch to the Christmas salad. Candied walnuts or almonds would also be delicious!
Orange Vinaigrette
- Orange Zest: Adds a pop of orange flavor to the vinaigrette! Orange is a classic winter flavor that is perfect for the holidays.
- Orange Juice: Fresh squeezed is best, but store-bought juice is easy to use.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: The acidity of vinegar brightens and balances the flavors in the vinaigrette.
- Honey: The sweetness of the dressing balances out the citrus and vinegar.
- Dijon Mustard: Adds creaminess and flavor to the vinaigrette.
- Poppyseeds: I love adding poppyseed to vinaigrettes and it’s also a fun texture.
- Kosher Salt: Season to taste to help balance out all of the flavors.
- Olive Oil: The base of the vinaigrette.
Christmas Salad Recipe
Assembling this beautiful Christmas salad is easy and it comes together quickly. Once you layer the ingredients in a bowl all you have left is to make the dressing. Make the dressing ahead of time and it’s easy to serve when you’re ready!
- Add the Salad Ingredients to a Large Bowl: Place the mixed greens, red onion slices, orange segments, pomegranate seeds, feta cheese, and candied pecans in a large bowl.
- Combine the Dressing Ingredients: Blend or whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until smooth.
- Toss the Dressing With the Salad: Just before serving, drizzle the dressing over the salad then gently toss.
- Serve and Enjoy: Serve immediately and enjoy!
Variations
This Christmas salad is super straightforward to make, and also so easy to switch up the flavors. This salad recipe will forever have a place on my holiday menu because it’s so beautiful and festive. I know you’ll love it too! Here are some variations to try.
- Add Protein: To add some protein to this salad to make it heartier. Crumbled bacon, hard-boiled eggs, or grilled chicken breast would be delicious!
- Switch Up the Fruit: Add berries, pears, or apples to this salad. I love to stick with seasonal fruits because it is a seasonal salad.
- Dried Fruit: Dried fruit would be a lovely addition. Dried cranberries or dried blueberries would be my first choice!
- Nuts: The nuts don’t have to be candied, but I love the sweetness it adds.
- Dressing: Even though the orange vinaigrette is perfect on this salad, it’s fun to experiment with other dressing flavors! I would recommend this balsamic vinaigrette or my apple cider vinaigrette.
Storing Leftover Salad
If you plan on making this salad ahead of time, I recommend storing the salad and dressing separately so the greens don’t wilt. I like to have all of the salad ingredients ready to go and then I assemble it right before serving.
- In the Refrigerator: Enjoy Christmas salad fresh or keep it refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days. The orange vinaigrette can be kept on its own in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
More Holiday Sides to Enjoy
The side dishes are the best part of a holiday dinner! It’s fun to fill your plate with all the delicious food. My kids especially love the jello salads and rolls! Here are some of our tried and true holiday side dishes. I know you’re family will love them too!
Bread
Lion House Rolls
3 hrs 50 mins
Side Dishes
Garlic Parmesan Green Beans with Bacon
20 mins
Desserts
The Famous Raspberry Pretzel Salad
20 mins
Side Dishes
3 Ingredient Candied Sweet Potatoes
55 mins
Christmas Salad
Ingredients
Salad
- 6 cups mixed greens
- ¼ cup red onion, sliced
- 1 cup mandarin oranges or clementines
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
- ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
- ½ cup candied pecans, or walnuts
Orange Vinaigrette
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon poppyseeds
- Kosher salt to taste
- ⅓ cup olive oil
Instructions
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Place the mixed greens, red onion slices, mandarin oranges, pomegranate seeds, feta cheese, and candied pecans in a large bowl.
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Blend or whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until smooth.
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Just before serving, drizzle the dressing over the salad then gently toss.
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Serve immediately and enjoy!
