Citrus Salad with Blue Cheese
It’s okay to fail. Sometimes it’s even positive. You see, if every batch of my new marmalade had worked, I wouldn’t have created this delicious Citrus Salad with Blue Cheese.
Citrus Salad with Blue Cheese
Yes, this month I made my first marmalade—three batches of it. And one of them failed. The flavor was good, but it was syrupy rather than gel-like. What to do with a chunky orange syrup… (Of course a perfect marmalade or jam would work for this too.)
Marmalade for salad dressing
I settled on mixing my failed marmalade into a vinaigrette. A few ingredients later I had a Citrus salad with Blue Cheese (go ahead and use a flavorful non-dairy cheese for a vegan salad) that included both fruit and vegetables.
Add almonds and blue cheese
Winter always makes it just a little harder to get enough daily servings of fruit (2-4) and vegetables (3-5). It’s a far cry from summer, with farmers hawking fresh strawberries in the markets or fall with backyard fruit trees heavy with fruit.
Citrus Salad with Blue Cheese served
The salad is a bit sweet, with a brightness that is so welcome in winter. And it’s extra healthy right when it counts (I almost have those holiday lbs off!) Nothing like some orange sunshine on a cold winter day!
Enjoying Winter
- 2 Tablespoons marmalade or jam (see note)
- 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 6 cups torn lettuce
- 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese (use a flavorful non-dairy cheese for a vegan substitute)
- 1/4 cup chopped almonds (or other nut)
- 2 oranges, peeled and sectioned
- Add dressing ingredients to a bowl and whisk until emulsified.
- Divide lettuce among 4 bowls. Drizzle dressing on over lettuce then top with blue cheese & nuts. Arrange orange slices on top.
- Serve immediately.
- If your marmalade or jam is too thick to whisk in, heat it briefly until it begins to liquefy, then add.
Hi Inger, love your dressing, so clever to make it into a dressing, gorgeous salad. Also the pic of the little birds on your gloves is very sweet.
This was the first time I made marmalade too, really enjoyed the process.;)
Thanks Cheri. It will be fun to compare preserving projects as the year moves on!
Sounds and looks delicious! And how awesome is the birds photo! Is that your hand they are eating from? How did you do that? Our birds would never come that close.
Thanks Freeda. That is my husband’s hand and this is in a state park feeding area where the birds are pretty tame. I even have a picture with a bird sitting on his head!
What a refreshing salad Inger! Citrus is my most favorite puckering fruit for Winter, lol…LOVE the dressing!!! Pinning!!!
Thanks Louise. I know the first time I went crazy canning, I didn’t realize I also needed to figure out what to do with the food when I was done 😉
Using failed marmalade as a flavoring for vinaigrette is creative and clever. Love this idea! I have a few failed attempts at jelly and finally used my less than “jelled” syrup as a marinade for chicken and pork.
Beautiful salad with dressing. Thanks for sharing.
Velva
I love the idea of using “syrup” as a marinade Velva! I’d marinade things a lot more if I could (more or less) just open a jar! Thanks for sharing.
Clever idea..using marmalade in your vinaigrette. I’ve used orange juice many times, but never marmalade. Probably too sweet for my daughter, but not me!
It was pretty sweet the first time I did it. But a little extra oil, vinegar and seasoning brought it down some!
I really enjoy citrus vinaigrette.
Fun use of your marmalade! The salad looks wonderful, Inger, and I like that you said it is a bright spot in winter! So true!
i didn’t always love the punch of blue cheese, but now i find that it definitely has its place in some dishes! great salad. 🙂