Are you looking for a healthier option for your holiday meal? Try out this easy and delicious Christmas salad recipe! Packed with nutritious ingredients and bursting with festive flavors, it’s the perfect addition to any holiday spread.
The flavors of the fresh citrus, salad greens, and pomegranate meld so well together, especially with a honey mustard vinaigrette, making it the perfect side dish. I love to serve it with roasted rosemary potatoes and New York Strip Steak.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
See the complete list of ingredients on the recipe card below.
- Spring greens: or mixed greens like arugula, baby spinach, baby greens
- Nuts: almonds, pecans, pistachios, pine nuts, and walnuts.
- Cheese: I like feta because it works well in this salad, but you can substitute Parmesan, goat, or blue cheese.
- Oranges: Preferably seedless mandarins. They are easy to peel, full of flavor, and bite-sized.
- Pomegranate seeds: also known as pomegranate arils. If you can not find them, try dried cranberries or blueberries.
How to Make Christmas Salad
This is the summary version; see the recipe card below for the complete list of ingredients and the instructions.
- Whisk the minced garlic, champagne vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking continuously.
- Add your spring greens, sliced almonds, feta cheese, mandarin oranges, and pomegranate arils to a large bowl. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.
Make It Ahead
You can make the honey mustard champagne vinaigrette up to 2 days in advance; however, remove it from the refrigerator about 45 minutes before serving to warm to room temperature, then whisk or shake well.
Prep the oranges and pomegranate arils up to 24 hours in advance and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. Assemble the salad up to 1 hour before, but do not toss with the vinaigrette until ready to serve.
Preparation Tips For The Best Christmas Salad
- I encourage you to use fresh, seedless mandarin oranges for optimal taste, but you could also use canned ones in a pinch.
- Pomegranate arils are just the red jewels found inside a pomegranate. They contain a sweet nectar surrounding a white seed in the center. Around late November through December, grocery stores will have pomegranates available, and some stores may even have the arils already removed and available for sale.
- This salad is equally delicious with a honey-poppyseed dressing.
More Salad Recipes
Christmas Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Honey Mustard Vinaigrette
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons Dijon Mustard
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- ¼ cup olive oil
Christmas Salad
- 12 ounces fresh spring greens
- ⅔ cup sliced almonds
- ⅔ cup feta cheese
- 4 seedless mandarin oranges peeled and segmented
- 1 pomegranate seeded
Instructions
- Whisk together minced garlic, champagne vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in olive oil, whisking continuously.
- Add spring green, sliced almonds, feta cheese, mandarin oranges, and pomegranate arils in a large bowl. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition
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Brianne
This is such a beautiful, festive salad. I love the flavors, and I just love the look of it, too. It really is a bowlful of Christmas.
Ed
I believe this salad will be very good for us, for a change on Christmas! Not that what we have is awful but it’s the season for trying out new traditions!
Frank
This looks yummy, it might be early for Christmas but it is never too early for eating something like this. Thank you for sharing!
Sonia
Great salad recipe for anytime of the year. We loved it. I used dried cranberries since pomegranites are really not available yet.
Moni
This Christmas salad idea is fantastic! The post is brief yet exciting, capturing the holiday spirit in a bowl. The mix of ingredients sounds delicious and festive. Can’t wait to try it out and add some Christmas cheer to the table. 🎄🥗
Angelica Sereda
This will be added to our Christmas menu. Looks so flavorful.
Kimberley
Hi, I loved your blog post about the best Christmas salad recipe. It looks so fresh and festive. I’m always looking for new ways to make salads more exciting and delicious. Your honey mustard champagne vinaigrette sounds amazing. I can’t wait to try it.
Ellanor
I’m so looking forward to making this Christmas salad recipe this year. I already know the flavor combos will be scrumptious.
Richard
We love this salad. It is a hit anytime of the year.
Debbie
This is the first time I’ve heard of delicious Christmas Salad – but it sounds amazing. I love sliced almonds, feta cheese, and mandarin oranges, and it sounds fabulous all drizzled with a tangy Honey Mustard Champagne Vinaigrette. I can’t wait to make it!
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Debbie! Enjoy!