A couple of months ago I went off on a little bit of a Middle Eastern adventure (this happens at least twice a year for me) and it’s safe to say that I had a brilliant time. I’m sure you all know by now that I’m like 1/4 Israeli, which naturally means that I’m obsessed with hummus, tahini, and every Middle Eastern spice in existence.
A beautiful Purple Bittersweet Middle Eastern Salad with distinctive citrus and floral flavours to enlighten the senses. Perfect for every season.
There’s something about Middle Eastern cuisine that will just suck you in to its vividly aromatic world and its vibrant colours. Being British is often bland and sometimes I feel like it’s more 50 shades of beige rather than anything remotely exciting in sight.
This salad was largely Ottolenghi inspired but I had to make the dressing my own. I wanted to go a different route from orange based syrups or tahini dressings, I wanted to go for something a little more uplifting yet still floral and aromatic. So, I decided to combine coconut yogurt with orange juice, pomegranate molasses, and orange blossom water for a dressing that is light yet still pungent enough to feel that little bit more exuberant.
You’ll be pleased to know that this salad takes hardly any time to prepare and depending upon how hungry you are it can serve 2 people as a large main and 4 as a starter or side. So what are you waiting for? Get cracking!
- 1 head radicchio (shredded)
- 1 beet (peeled and spiralised/shredded)
- 1 red onion (finely sliced)
- 2 oranges (peeled and segmented)
- Seeds of 1 large pomegranate
- ⅓ cup coconut yogurt
- Juice ½ orange
- 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp orange blossom water
- ½ tsp fine Himalayan pink salt (if coarse grind)
- Black pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp chopped pistachios (per person)
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (per person)
- Start by preparing your fruit and vegetables for your salad. Arrange your salad on plates by layering your ingredients. I found it easiest to place the onions on the outer edges at the bottom and then added a mix of beetroot and radicchio, followed by the orange segments and pomegranate seeds. Alternatively toss the ingredients of the salad together in a bowl then serve onto plates.
- Next combine the ingredients for your your dressing into a bowl and whisk until smooth. Drizzle over each serving and top with chopped pistachios and toasted sesame seeds.
**All cup measurements used are UK cup measurements and so 1 cup = 250ml.
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