Apple Pomegranate Salad

A platter of salad with apple slices, pomegranate seeds, pecans and dried cranberries.

5 from 1 vote

Apple Pomegranate Salad is a beautifully festive salad for your holiday table highlighting seasonal fall and winter apples, cranberry, pomegranate, and candied pecans and pumpkin seeds. Colorful, fancy-looking, but really very easy, this holiday or Thanksgiving salad can be made ahead and takes just 20 minutes!

Prep Time16

Cook Time4

Total Time20

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings:

Calories: 238kcal

Author: Meryl Downing

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon butter
1 cup pecans (or walnuts)
¼ cup pumpkin seeds (raw pepitas)
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
5 ounces lettuce mix
1 to 2 apples thinly sliced (about 1 cup)
⅓ cup pomegranate seeds
⅓ cup dried cranberry
⅓ cup feta cheese crumbled
⅛ cup red onion a few thin slices

For the Dressing

½ teaspoon kosher salt
6 grinds fresh black pepper
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon maple syrup or honey
3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
¼ cup olive oil

Instructions

In a skillet over medium low heat, add the butter, pecans, pumpkin seeds and brown sugar. Stir and toss to coat constantly for about 3 to 4 minutes. Don't walk away, nuts and sugar burn quickly! Pour into a bowl to cool.
Add the ingredients for the dressing to a jar with a lid and shake well to emulsify.
Prep your ingredients, removing the pomegranate seeds and discarding the pith, and slicing the onions and apples.
Add the lettuce to a large mixing bowl with about half of each ingredient and toss with a bit of dressing.
Transfer to a serving platter and top with the remaining ingredients and another drizzle of dressing.

Notes

Don't burn the nuts and seeds - Don't walk away, nuts and sugar can burn very quickly! Stir and flip constantly, then pour into a bowl when done so they don't continue cooking in the pan.
Abundant Ingredients - There is a generous portion of each ingredient for this salad, making the salad look overflowing and festive for the holidays! These amounts can be adjusted if you think it's too much or you don't quite have enough of any ingredients.
Toss with Half, Top with Half - The trick to salad presentation is not letting all the ingredients fall to the bottom of the bowl! Add half of each ingredient when tossing the lettuce and dressing, then arrange the other half over the top.

Nutrition