Fall

Demeter and Persephone's Antioxidant Salad

December 31, 2009
5
2 Ratings
  • Serves 4 (as a starter)
Author Notes

I always vow to curb holiday excess; to eat lighter, healthier fare each new year. What I refuse to give up on, though, are the brightness and good cheer that belong to the December season. This refreshing salad is a nod to both health and holidays. It features pomegranates, which are Persephone's food—jewel-like winter kernels, bursting with antioxidants—and pairs them with other super-nutrients that will satisfy your resolutions: spinach, oranges, and walnuts. Pomegranates also play an important role in Greek New Year's customs; gently tossed at the threshold of a home, their spilling seeds indicate prosperity for the coming year. Popping with color, playing with texture, this salad anticipates the joyful, springtime reunion of Persephone and Demeter. Add some excellent feta and a dressing of olive oil and pomegranate molasses, and you've got a meal that any mother would approve of. —Allison Cay Parker

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the dressing
  • 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
  • 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons honey
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
  • 1/8 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
  • freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • For the salad
  • 8 cups loosely packed fresh baby spinach leaves
  • 6 ounces feta cheese (I use Greek sheep-milk feta)
  • 1 orange (try the Cara Cara orange for its orange-red hue)
  • 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
Directions
  1. Prepare the dressing. Combine the pomegranate molasses, balsamic vinegar, honey, orange zest, salt and pepper in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Cover and shake well to blend. Add the olive oil; cover and shake again. Adjust seasoning to taste. (Alternatively, whisk together all ingredients except the olive oil in a small bowl until well blended. Then, drizzle in the oil while whisking continuously until thoroughly combined.) Set the dressing aside while you prepare the salad.
  2. Prepare the salad ingredients. Rinse the spinach leaves thoroughly in cool water and give them a whirl in a salad spinner to dry; or, you can blot each leaf gently between kitchen (or paper) towels to dry. Cut feta cheese into eight slices, approximately 1/2-inch thick. Slice four thick rounds of orange, removing the peel and as much of the white pith as possible from around the outside and inner core of each slice. Measure out enough fresh pomegranate seeds and shelled walnuts for the salad.
  3. Assemble the salad. On four plates, arrange the spinach leaves to form an attractive bed of greens. Next, on each plate place two slices of feta and one orange slice. Scatter the pomegranate seeds and walnuts over all, distributing evenly. Drizzle the salad dressing over each salad—just enough to moisten (up to 1 tablespoon, but I find that just a teaspoon or two works best). If the dressing has separated, be sure to shake or whisk it again before pouring over the salad.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • QueenOfGreen
    QueenOfGreen
  • arielleclementine
    arielleclementine
  • Allison Cay Parker
    Allison Cay Parker
  • Foodie!
    Foodie!

6 Reviews

QueenOfGreen February 21, 2010
Love it! Both the recipe and the lore! Will try this when Mom is in town, and I'm sure she'll love it too.
 
Allison C. February 23, 2010
Thanks! Glad you like the recipe and its lore. Perfect for mother-daughter meal. Hope you both enjoy it and each other during her visit.
 
Foodie! January 26, 2010
Looks and sounds fabulous! Can't wait to try this recipe! Love the name!
 
Allison C. February 23, 2010
Thank you!
 
arielleclementine January 1, 2010
this sounds delicious!
 
Allison C. January 1, 2010
Thank you so much. I hope you make and enjoy this salad throughout the new year! Cheers to you.