Pomegranate, Feta & Beetroot Salad
Pomegranate, Feta & Beetroot Salad
Just before Christmas I was chatting to my best friend in South Africa via Skype. Inbetween all the usual catching up she pounced this question on me, "We're taking a salad to Christmas Eve lunch with the family, do you know a nice salad to make? Something that's not the usual boring lettuce leaves and cucumber combo."
I know I'm brilliant *cough* but good gosh, thanks for that. Now I'm the off-the-top-of-your-head recipe idea lady. lol! Normally I get my ideas when I'm standing in the market with a whole bunch of ingredients in front of me. I told her I'd have a think about it.
We carried on chatting but then her mom-in-law decided to say hi as well, and then it came again. She wanted a nice idea for a Christmassy salad. Now I was on the spot, thankfully my brain was functioning that day! Something that popped into my head was pomegranate.
I remembered that around November and December, Woolworth's (M&S) would bring out things more seasonal for Christmas, one of these things was pomegranate. They'd have things like fruit salads with pomegranate and Christmas spices. It seemed like the perfect thing for a Christmas lunch in hot and sunny SA. After that popped into my head, the rest came along without too much mental strain ;)
Beautiful red gems
Mixed lettuce leaves, feta, pomegranate & cherry tomatoes. They loved that idea, it was different and interesting and the colours would be lovely; bright red with the tomatoes and lovely little pomegranate gems, white feta and different hues of green. Although I'm certainly not the first person to think of this combo, I was pretty chuffed with myself all the same ;)
When I decided I wanted to get this posted before pomegranates weren't on the shelves anymore, it developed a little more. I find the selection of lettuce to be a little limited here, but mixed leave bags are pretty good, they normally include types of lettuce that I can't find individually. I came across a bag of mixed leaves that also had raw beetroot in it. Beautiful colours! Would be perfect, not just in colour, but in taste as well. The beetroot would be an earthy sort of sweet, while the pomegranate would give little bursts of juicy sweetness against the salty feta. Yum!
Soup & (a vibrant) salad
Whether you're in full hot summer and enjoying this with a barbeque (braai!) or wrapped up in the cold and having soup, this salad is a lovely mix of flavours that will liven up any meal.
Ingredients
Mixed Lettuce Leaves
1 Raw Beetroot, julienne or grated
1 Pomegranate
Feta
Cherry Tomatoes
Dressing
Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Method
- Wash and dry the lettuce
- Roughly tear the leaves into smaller pieces
- Cut cherry tomatoes in half
- Combine & toss lettuce, tomatoes, cubed or crumbled feta and beetroot in a serving bowl
- Remove seeds from the pomegranate
- Throw the seeds over the top of the salad
- Dress with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper
Other Tips
For an easy, mess free way to remove pomegranate seeds, visit Pennies on a Platter
MandyM
Reader Comments (5)
Mandy, thanks so much for the Over the Top award ..... Really appreciated it....
http://bakeinparis.blogspot.com/2010/01/grateful.html
Pomegranate, Feta & Beetroot Salad look so delicious and colorful! Nice photography and lighting..... as usual!
Sawadee from bangkok,
Kris
Thank you for the compliment :D I had fun taking these photos, the colours were really fun to work with.
Also, it's an absolute pleasure for the award, you deserve it!
That is my kind of salad, Mandy! Looks so healthful but also delicious with the contrasting flavors. Nice photos too.
I am in LUST with this salad, the combo of pomegranate/beetroot and feta is mouth watering, and the color in your photos is outstanding! Also thanks for the link to the pomegranate seed removal made easy. I always struggle and make a mess..popping some of the seeds..LOL
Thanks for the lovely comment, Cam! It really is a great flavour combo and definitely healthy without being boring :)
Lisa, I struggle when it comes to taking pics of savoury food, it's just not always as "pretty" as most sweet things and I just battle a bit, but this salad's colours really look good so it was nice/easy to get a good photo & I'm really happy with the way they came out.
I've also discovered a better place in my apartment to take pics in the winter! Yay for me! lol :)
Also, it's a pleasure re the link to seeding a pomegranate, I have a red spotted apron 'cause I found that AFTER seeding the damn thing! :)