Simple Winter Salad with Blood Orange Vinaigrette

Blood oranges are in season and I love their amazing color. I had the stomach flu a couple of weeks ago, and the worst thing about that (besides the obvious) is not being able to eat good food. I always end up obsessing over something I see on TV, which in the past helped lead me astray from being a vegetarian (burgers just looked too good!). This time, I was haunted by the amazing opening credits of Dexter. If you haven’t seen them, they are a montage of Dexter’s morning routine, including sizzling ham, eggs with runny yolks, perfect French press coffee, and him juicing a blood orange. I was drooling.

When I saw local blood oranges for a good price at the store, I had to get some. They ended up in a simple winter salad with spinach and walnuts. Winter veggies can get very monotonous (I love squash, but you can only eat so much of it), so this salad was a nice change. The blood orange adds a bright citrus note to the salad, while the walnuts add some nice crunch and texture.

I juiced another blood orange and whipped up a simple vinaigrette. It’s a bit on the sweeter side, but not overwhelmingly so. It was a lovely accompaniment to this simple salad.

In the past I made muffins with candied blood orange slices on top, which were also delicious but clearly less healthy. What’s your favorite way to use this colorful citrus?

Recipe:

Simple Winter Salad

  • 2 C spinach
  • 1/4 C walnuts, chopped
  • 1 blood orange, peeled and cut into segments
  • Blood orange vinaigrette (see recipe below)

Wash and dry spinach. Combine in a large bowl with walnuts and blood orange segments. Toss with vinaigrette until everything is evenly coated.

Blood Orange Vinaigrette

  • 2 T extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 T blood orange juice
  • 2 t champagne vinegar
  • 1/4 t agave or honey
  • Pinch of kosher salt

Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined. Pour over salad and toss until everything is evenly coated.

14 Comments on Simple Winter Salad with Blood Orange Vinaigrette

  1. Wheels
    February 2, 2011 at 1:17 pm (13 years ago)

    Champagne vinegar? That sounds exciting!

    Reply
  2. Vegolicious
    February 2, 2011 at 8:51 pm (13 years ago)

    I love the simplicity of this salad that is made special with the blood orange.

    I’d love for your to submit them to Vegolicious, a vegetarian food photo gallery where readers can browse beautiful photos to discover new recipes and wonderful blogs. If you would like to share this recipe with our readers please submit a photo along with a link to this post.
    Vegolicious recently posted Mexican Style Beluga Lentils

    Reply
  3. Cakewhiz
    February 3, 2011 at 2:59 pm (13 years ago)

    That picture of your orange is magazine worthy! I am sure those juicy oranges added a zesty tanginess to your salad 🙂

    Reply
  4. Stephanie
    February 4, 2011 at 7:17 pm (13 years ago)

    Thanks everyone!

    Vegolicious – I submitted this and a couple of other vegetarian recipes of mine. Thank you for commenting and telling me about your site!

    Tiffany – thank you so much for the award! You are so sweet!

    Reply

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