Deep red slices of sugar beets and jewel-like pomegranate arils on a bed of salad greens and micro greens, sprinkled with walnuts and drizzled with fresh orange vinaigrette. Sounds truly amazing, right? That’s just how beautiful and delicious this Winter Salad with Beets and Pomegranates is! Based on seasonal winter produce, this glistening salad recipe proves that you really can have great salads even during the colder months. Filled with important nutrients, such as fiber, phytochemicals, antioxidant compounds, vitamins, minerals, protein, and healthy fats, this salad packs in the health benefits to help keep your immune function stoked during the winter. Plus, this colorful salad is perfect for your holiday table, whether it’s for a Thanksgiving side, Christmas salad, or New Year’s party recipe. Filled with textures—the crunch of pomegranate arils and walnuts, fresh tingle of citrus, and softness of beet slices—this healthy salad will brighten your dreariest day! This beet salad is gluten free and vegan, fitting everyone’s preferences at your dinner table.
Health Benefits of Beets
One of the key ingredients of this recipe is deep red earthy sugar beets (also called beetroots). My husband’s Swedish heritage has brought me a vast appreciation for beets, a somewhat undervalued vegetable that many chefs have showcased beautifully, bringing back awareness to the value of this food in the past few years. Beets are a key food in traditional Nordic diets. The compounds responsible for beets’ deep red hue, called betalains, are anti-inflammatory, too. Beets have been linked to many health benefits, such as better heart health, blood pressure levels, and performance recovery.
How to Cook Beets
I love to start with fresh beets for this recipe—just trim tops (save beet tops for smoothies or to use as greens in your favorite recipe), scrub with a vegetable brush, and cook in water until fork tender (about 7 minutes in the microwave or 25 minutes on the stove). You can also roast beets for this salad. Learn how to roast beets here. When are beets in season? Beets are available in the winter time because they are harvested in the fall and winter and they have a longer storage period than more perishable produce. Beets can be grown in the winter in warmer climates, such as California where I live. I grow beets in my garden every winter!
Pomegranate Benefits
Pomegranates are also a superfood in their own right. These bright red fruits (the seeds are called arils) are filled with fiber and antioxidant compounds. It shouldn’t be a surprise to find that including pomegranates in your diet is linked with reduced inflammation, improved heart health, and better physical endurance. When are pomegranates in season? Pomegranates are in season September through January in the U.S. Most of our pomegranate production centers in the central coast of California. I have a bunch of pomegranate trees in my orchard, and they are at their peak harvest in December. Learn more about pomegranates here.
Here’s everything you will need for this recipe.Watch me make this recipe on Instagram here.Print
This sparkling gluten-free vegan Winter Salad with Beets and Pomegranates is brimming with color, taste, texture, and flavor, compliments of leafy greens, micro greens, sugar beets, pomegranates, walnuts, and an orange vinaigrette.
Ingredients
Scale
Salad:
4 cups packed baby salad greens
2 cups packed micro greens (i.e., radish, sunflower, alfalfa, broccoli); (or may use sprouts)
2 cups sliced cooked beets (about 3 medium beets), cooled
Arrange the salad greens in a large salad bowl or on 12-inch platter. Top with the micro greens (or may use sprouts).
Arrange the beets on top of the micro greens and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and walnuts.
To make the orange vinaigrette: Zest the orange (using a zester or fine shredder). Add to a small bowl. Juice the orange and add to the bowl. Add olive oil, black pepper, garlic powder, and salt (optional) to the bowl and whisk together until blended. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad and serve immediately.
Makes 8 (1 cup) servings.
Notes
If you don’t have time to cook fresh beets for this recipe, use drained canned beets (preferably with no added salt) or refrigerated cooked beets, which are available in many supermarkets.
Prep Time:12 minutes
Category:Salad
Cuisine:American
Nutrition
Serving Size:1 serving
Calories:102
Sugar:7 g
Sodium:43 mg
Fat:6 g
Saturated Fat:1 g
Carbohydrates:8 g
Fiber:3 g
Protein:2 g
For other inspirational plant-based salads, try these favorites:
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