Mandarin Orange Salad

A light and refreshing Mandarin Orange Salad made with mixed greens, toasted walnuts, dried cranberries, and crumbled feta cheese, all drizzled with a tangy six-ingredient orange vinaigrette. This beautiful salad is perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Keyword how to make mandarin orange salad, mandarin orange salad recipe, orange mandarin salad, orange vinaigrete

Prep Time 20

Servings servings

Calories 330kcal

Author Beth Pierce

Ingredients

Orange Vinaigrette
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
¼ cup orange juice
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Salad Ingredients
10 ounces spring mix
6 mandarin oranges segmented
¾ cup toasted walnuts
½ cup dried cranberries
⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese
¼ cup thinly sliced red onion

Instructions

Combine the champagne vinegar, orange juice, orange zest, honey, Dijon mustard, and olive oil in a mason jar. Shake vigorously and season with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste.
Add the spring greens, mandarin orange segments, toasted walnuts, dried cranberries, crumbled feta, and red onion to a large bowl. Drizzle with the dressing and toss to coat. For best results, serve promptly.

Notes

Spring greens are a blend of assorted baby greens and baby lettuce. The young greens included in the mix could be arugula, green chard, kale, red chard, baby spinach, endive, or radicchio. Some of the baby lettuces included might be green oak leaf, red leaf, red oak, tango loose leaf, or red or green romaine lettuce.
Mix the dressing up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate. Remove from the fridge an hour before preparing the salad.
Without a doubt, homemade salad dressing tastes much better than bottled salad dressing every time.
Substitute 1 (15-ounce) can of mandarin oranges drained for the fresh mandarin oranges.
Dried cherries are a tasty substitute for dried cranberries.
Other nuts to work with include pecans, almonds, and pine nuts. Or try sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds.
To keep it fresh, purchase a small block of feta and crumble it yourself. Goat cheese, Parmesan, and cotija cheese are all good substitutions.
Drizzle the dressing and toss to coat right before serving.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge but keep in mind that the greens will wilt quickly.

Nutrition