Description
A vibrant and refreshing Fall Harvest Salad featuring crisp fennel, sweet persimmon and apple slices, toasted pumpkin seeds and pecans, dried cranberries, and shaved Manchego cheese, all tossed in a tangy and slightly sweet mustard orange vinaigrette. Perfect for celebrating the flavors of autumn in a light, healthy salad.
Ingredients
Scale
Mustard Orange Vinaigrette
- ¼ cup fresh orange juice (about 1 orange)
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1½ tablespoons stone ground mustard
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Salad
- 1 bulb fennel, trimmed and finely sliced
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 1 persimmon, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 apple, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup pumpkin seeds
- ¼ cup pecans, chopped
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup Manchego cheese, shaved
- 2 cups arugula
- Flaky sea salt, to taste
Instructions
- Prepare Mustard Orange Vinaigrette: In a small bowl, whisk together the fresh orange juice, olive oil, stone ground mustard, honey, and kosher salt until well combined. Set aside.
- Prep the Fennel and Shallot: Trim and thinly slice the fennel bulb, placing it into a mixing bowl. Trim and clean the shallot, cut in half, then thinly slice it. Rinse the sliced shallot with warm water to mellow its sharpness, then add it to the fennel.
- Massage Dressing into Fennel: Add half of the prepared vinaigrette to the fennel and shallot mixture and gently massage it in to help soften the fennel and infuse flavor.
- Slice Persimmon and Apple: Thinly slice the persimmon and apple and set them aside for garnishing the salad.
- Combine Nuts, Seeds, Cheese, and Greens: Add the pumpkin seeds, chopped pecans, dried cranberries, shaved Manchego cheese, and arugula to the fennel mixture.
- Toss with Remaining Dressing: Drizzle the rest of the vinaigrette over the combined salad ingredients and gently toss to evenly coat everything.
- Plate and Serve: Transfer the salad to a serving platter, arrange the apple and persimmon slices in groups on top, sprinkle with flaky sea salt to taste, and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- Rinsing the shallot in warm water reduces its sharp raw flavor for a milder taste.
- Use fresh orange juice for the best flavor in the vinaigrette; bottled juice can be used in a pinch but may alter the taste slightly.
- Massage the vinaigrette into the fennel to soften its texture and enhance flavor absorption.
- For a nut-free version, omit the pecans and pumpkin seeds or substitute with toasted sunflower seeds.
- This salad is best enjoyed fresh to maintain the crispness of the ingredients.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: No-Cook
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Fall salad, harvest salad, fennel salad, persimmon recipe, autumn salad, healthy salad, salad with nuts, orange vinaigrette, vegetarian salad
