This Orange Lettuce Salad is one of the lightest and most refreshing salads ever! Mixed together with apples, walnuts, sesame seeds, and a very appetizing orange-honey balsamic vinaigrette.
The flavors inside this salad combine so well with each other that's almost impossible to stop biting on it. And the best part is that it's healthy and low in calories, so go ahead and treat yourself even with a whole bowl of it!
Since it's such a light salad it may not be as filling to serve on its own as a main dish. Though you can add some low-fat cheese to it, such as a grilled slice of Halloumi, or some Ricotta cheese, and turn this salad into a healthy low-calorie meal.
Ingredients For Making Orange Lettuce Salad
To make the best out of this salad ideally opt for certain varieties of ingredients such as...
Lettuce: best lettuce variety for this salad is Batavia lettuce. It's both crunchy and soft and adds a nice volume to the salad without getting soggy. You can even use a mix of both green and red Batavia lettuce.
Oranges: To make this salad truly delicious you need sweet oranges. Such as Cara Cara or Valencia Oranges.
Apples: My go-to apple variety for this salad is Golden Delicious. As it's not too sweet, a bit tart, and very aromatic which goes amazing with this salad.
Walnuts: Any will do.
Sesame: Use white sesame seeds and lightly toast them before adding them to the salad. This gives a beautiful toasted nutty flavor to the salad. If you want to skip toasting use the sesame seeds either raw or use sesame seeds with hulls-on for a stronger flavor.
As For The Vinaigrette: You need a bit of fresh orange juice, honey, balsamic vinegar, and, extra virgin olive oil.
Dishes That Go Nice With This Orange Lettuce Salad
This salad pairs up nicely with grilled or roasted chicken or salmon. Or any main dish with pork as oranges and pork is always a really good match.
Other Ingredients You Can Add To Orange Lettuce Salad
There are plenty of other ingredients that go nicely with this salad. You can add dried cranberries, toasted pine nuts, rocket, radicchio, even crispy bits of bacon.
Orange Lettuce Salad With Walnuts And Sesame
Ingredients
For The Vinaigrette:
- 1 tablespoon Balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon orange juice fresh
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon mustard mild
- salt and pepper
- 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
For The Salad:
- 6 cups chopped Batavia lettuce (curly leafed)
- 1 large orange Cara Cara or Valencia variety
- 1 medium-sized Golden Delicious apple
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice fresh
- 50 grams (about 3,t tablespoons) walnuts
- 20 grams (about 2 tablespoons) sesame seeds
Instructions
To Make The Vinaigrette:
- Add all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette to a small mixing bowl and stir with a whisk to combine. Then slowly add the olive oil while stirring vigorously with the whisk.
To Make The Salad:
- Peel and core the apple. Then slice thinly and add to a small bowl or large cup and fill with water. Add the fresh lemon juice and set it aside. This way the apple won't darken in color.
- Remove the skin of the orange, cut it in half, and then into thin slices.
- OPTIONAL: Lightly toast the sesame seeds in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Shake pan often as sesame seeds can get burned in mere seconds. You can skip this and use the sesame seeds raw.
- Add the lettuce in a mixing bowl, the apple slices, the orange slices, the walnuts, sesame seeds, and pour the vinaigrette all over on top. Mix the salad gently and you are ready to serve!
Nutrition
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Fotini, OMG, what a salad! I was drooling at the mouth after the second line. I can't wait for good oranges to be available. What a summertime salad with all fresh ingredients. you've been posting lovely recipes the last two weeks, I have to compliment you for their variety. I will try your orange cake with filo and my homemade version of Greek yogourt. With all my friendship, filakia.
Thank you, Paul. I'm sure it's going to turn out fantastic with your homemade Greek yogurt (homemade yogurt is the best). Filia