Mandarin Salad

Serves a Party of 4

At last, my favorite time of year is upon us and it is time to put away the warm and cozy soups for a second here and break out the salads and smoothies.

In my case, I celebrated the warmer days we’ve been having with this stunning mandarin salad that I topped with a homemade raspberry vinaigrette, hemp hearts, and dried cranberries.

Mandarins have to be one of my favorite things ever to eat, which is mainly what inspired me to get this salad going. I always day dreamed about how good they would be mixed with a sweet and savory dressing and bunch of leafy greens.

The leafy greens portion of the salad features chopped cabbage, baby spinach, arugula, red and green chard, oakleaf lettuce, and beet tops.

As for the raspberry vinaigrette, it came out even better than I had imagined. Blending organic raspberries, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, a squeezed lemon, everything seasoning, and agave syrup. the taste was out of this world and balanced perfectly in between the sweet and savory realm that I always crave the most.

Ingredients for the Salad:

  • 6 Mandarins
  • 1 Head of Cabbage
  • 6 Cups of Spring Mix (typically a mixture of baby spinach, arugula, chard, and lettuce)
  • 1/2 Cup of Dried Cranberries
  • 1/3 Cup of Hemp Hearts

Ingredients for the Raspberry Vinaigrette:

  • 1 Cup of Organic Raspberries
  • 1 Lemon
  • 2 Tablespoons of Agave Syrup
  • 2 Tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil
  • 1 Teaspoon of Dijon Mustard
  • 1 Teaspoon of Everything Seasoning

First, chop and dice the cabbage to medium sized pieces.

In the largest bowl you have available, thoroughly toss together the pealed mandarins, cabbage and the spring mix.

Squeeze the lemon juice out of the lemon into a smaller bowl using a lemon squeezer or citrus juicer.

For the dressing, blend the raspberries, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, squeezed lemon juice, everything seasoning, and agave syrup until you notice the raspberry seeds disappear.

To serve, lay down your bed of greens in your favorite salad bowl, sprinkle on the hemp hearts and dried cranberry, then finally drizzle down the raspberry vinaigrette.