Got a case of the Mondays? This vibrant, refreshing salad should snap you out of it! It makes for a great reviving lunch; or, it could even be a breakfast salad. The citrus flavors are great for waking you up!
This was my first time using kumquats, so I was pretty excited to satisfy my veggieosity and test them out in this delicious salad...
Adapted from and inspired by Fragrant Vanilla Cake's Winter Citrus Salad
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 1 large ripe mango
- 1 large ripe grapefruit
- 1 can mandarin oranges
- 6-7 kumquats
- Greens of choice for salad (baby spinach, arugula, baby lettuce blend)
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp lime juice, plus lime zest
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp poppy seeds
- Dash of sea salt
- Peel the grapefruit so that all skin is removed. Drain the oranges, and place in a large bowl with the peeled grapefruit. Slice the mangoes and place those in the bowl as well; you can reserve any excess liquid from cutting the mangoes & peeling the grapefruit in the bowl, as it will add to the dressing flavor.
- To make the dressing, whisk the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
- To serve, toss about two large handfuls of greens with the fruit; add desired amount of dressing.
A beautiful bowl of "wake me up" citrus! |
Notes:
I actually think the dressing isn't even needed here, since you get so much delicious flavor & juices from the fresh fruit. But, the poppy seeds do add a nice element, so you could always use a little lime juice and poppy-seed mix if you want a completely fat-free version.
The original recipe actually called for avocado instead of mango; unfortunately, I'd completely forgotten I was going to use that little avocado in this dish, and had eaten it earlier in the week. Whoops ;-) Luckily, the mango went perfectly in here and turned out to be a really nice change, since I usually put avocado in my salads.
So what about the kumquats? They definitely went well in this dish, and were so zesty & vibrant. They actually kind of remind me of eating a lemon though; not quite that tart, but definitely lemony-tasting. I think they make for a great addition to salads like this one. And did you know they are the only citrus fruit that you can eat the peel? Kind of cool, huh? (And a good thing, because who would want to peel those little suckers?!)
I love the citrus with the poopy seeds - such a beautiful contrast!
ReplyDelete