Sicilian Citrus Salad: Day #3 of All Citrus Week

There are lots of citrus salads floating around the blogosphere, and for good reason. They're incredibly easy to make, they're stunning to look at, and they're so different from all the other salads we make, especially in mid winter.  I've made several on the blog, here, here, here, and here, but every time I see another variation I fall in love all over again.
 

I came across this salad at Arctic Garden Studio the other day and I needed to make it right away.  Nicole blogs from the interior of Alaska!  There is a beautiful clear northern light that drenches her photos, and lots of sunny citrus fruit in her recipes.  I love how she stacked the citrus in this salad, it makes the most of their vibrant colors.

You'll need a bed of greens, your choice, for your citrus stacks to rest on.  I used micro kale because I had it in the fridge and I love it.  Plan on at least one piece of citrus fruit for each serving.  I chose a pink and a white grapefruit, a navel orange, a Cara Cara orange, and a blood orange for a good mix of sizes and colors.  There are subtle color differences even between oranges and tangerines, so if you can't find fancy varieties, just be sure to grab several different kinds of citrus.

You can peel and slice your citrus any way you want, but I find it easiest to slice them into quarter inch slices with their peel on, and then go around each slice with a small sharp serrated knife to remove the peel.  Pop out any seeds before you start stacking.

Add some goat or feta cheese, some crushed pistachios (roasted and salted), thinly sliced red onion and a sprinkling of fresh mint leaves.  I find the salad hardly needs any dressing at all, maybe a drizzle of really good olive oil, some salt and fresh black pepper.  The juice of the fruit provides the acidity.  Go for a simple vinaigrette if you want a more pronounced flavor.

Isn't this so pretty?  There are lots of ways to arrange these Mediterranean inspired citrus salads.  Sometimes the slices are spread out on a platter, sometimes the fruit is sectioned and mixed with greens.  Any way you do it they are a really nice change from a green salad.

I'm not sure what I'm going to make for tomorrow---any ideas?


One year ago today---

Sicilian Orange Tart

 

*** What a coincidence!  One year ago today I was enthralled with another Sicilian citrus recipe.   I am continually amazed at the food connections from year to year.