Not your average salad - this one’s bright, vibrant, and bursting with flavour and texture, yet still beautifully balanced.
It’s the ultimate festive showstopper: stunning to look at, delicious to eat, and made with simple, everyday ingredients.
This salad has everything going for it - colour, crunch, and that perfect balance of sweet, creamy, and earthy flavours.
It’s fresh, festive, and healthy too, making it just as perfect for entertaining as it is for an easy weeknight side with grilled or BBQ’d protein.
For this recipe, I teamed up with Kitchen Warehouse to create this festive moment, featuring their beautiful Salisbury & Co Baltic range. Check out the video above for a little behind the scenes at the shoot.
We shot three recipes that are perfect for Christmas Day - Pork Belly with Chilli Jam, Aioli & Crunchy Green Apple Slaw, a Lemon & Pistachio Baked Cheesecake, and this Orange, Avocado & Fresh Beetroot Salad.
Each recipe is simple to prepare, beautiful to serve, and perfect for sharing.
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Ingredients
Vegetarian, Gluten-free, Egg-free 
15 minutes preparation time 
6-8 Salad
- 2 handfuls mixed leaves
- 1/2 small fresh fennel bulb, very finely sliced with a mandolin or sharp knife (reserve fronds for garnish)
- 1 small fresh beetroot, peeled and very finely sliced into rounds with a mandolin or sharp knife
- 2 oranges (navel, blood orange, Cara Cara or a mix), skin sliced off using a knife, and orange sliced into 1cm rounds
- 1 firm ripe avocado, peeled and sliced into 8ths
- 100g goat cheese
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 2-3 tablespoons roasted slivered almonds
Dressing
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
- 1 small shallot, finely diced (about 1 tablespoon)
- Pinch salt to taste
- Pinch of aleppo pepper or chili flakes to taste, optional
Method
Make the dressing
- In a small jar, combine all dressing ingredients. Shake well to emulsify, or whisk together in a small bowl. Set aside until ready to use.
Assemble the salad
- Spread the mixed leaves over a large serving platter.
- Layer the fennel, beetroot, orange segments, and avocado over the leaves.
- Scatter over the goat cheese, capers, roasted slivered almonds and reserved fennel fronds.
Finish and serve
- Just before serving, spoon the dressing over the salad.
NOTES
- For extra colour and flavour, use a mix of orange varieties such as blood oranges and Cara Cara.
- If your beetroot is particularly firm, slice it with a mandoline for paper-thin pieces.
- Goat cheese can be swapped for feta or omitted for a dairy-free version.
- This salad is best assembled fresh and dressed right before serving to keep the leaves crisp.
