Winter Market Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
A little fresh relief when mashed potato season hits hard.
We’re heading straight into the season of roasts, casseroles, and creamy everything, so something green, fresh, and crunchy feels like a responsible life choice.
Enter the Winter Market Salad—a mix of crisp greens and winter fruits and vegetables drizzled with a grilled lemon vinaigrette that practically sparkles.
It’s super fresh, very easy, and is sort of like a reset button on a plate.
I love fall and winter cooking with all the pot roasts, chicken and dumplings, lasagna, creamy pot pies, hearty soups and stews and baked pastas dripping with cheese— but eventually I start craving something green.
A good salad reboots everything — it’s crisp, bright, and just the right antidote to all that comfort food.
This flexible recipe proves that winter salads can be every bit as fresh and vibrant as something you might make in summer.
Inspired by what’s in season (and actually good) at the grocery store, this plate of seasonal fruits and vegetables are thinly sliced and simply presented with a bright grilled lemon vinaigrette that brings it all together.
Don’t like persimmons? Just skip it, or use orange segments or quince instead.
Who knows? A big, fresh salad like this might just cheer you up on those long, gray winter days — all that color and crunch could lift anyone’s mood.
And if you’d like to serve it with a side of some hot, cheesy garlic bread, we’ll call that balance.
Thanks for reading, friends! Stay warm, eat something fresh, and I’ll see you back here soon.
WINTER MARKET SALAD WITH GRILLED LEMON VINAIGRETTE
This is a flexible recipe, feel free to swap or add other seasonal ingredients.
Makes 4 servings.
4 cups of fresh greens like arugula, spring mix, butter lettuce, watercress or a mixture of them
1 honeycrisp apple, sliced thin
2 cups red and yellow endive leaves, sliced in half vertically
1 cup fennel, bulb only, sliced thin
1 small shallot, sliced thin
1 carrot, shaved with a vegetable peeler
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds (arils)
4-5 radishes, any variety, sliced thin
Persimmon (Fuyu variety) sliced thin (or substitute quince)
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
1/4 cup of shaved Parmesan cheese
3 lemons, cut in half
Sugar
Directions:
Divide and arrange the ingredients on four plates or one large platter. Serve with grilled lemon vinaigrette.
Grilled lemon: Cut the lemons in half and sprinkle a little sugar on each cut-side.
Place the halves cut-side down in a non-stick skillet, and cook over medium-high heat until brown and caramelized, 3-5 minutes.
Squeeze enough juice out of the lemons to make the vinaigrette below, and to use the rest as garnish, if desired.
FRESH LEMON VINAIGRETTE
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
3 teaspoons honey
1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
½ tsp freshly ground pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
Combine all of the vinaigrette ingredients in a small jar with a lid and shake well to combine. Taste and adjust with a bit more salt or pepper, if needed.