A vegan Winter Salad with orange, pomegranate and quinoa tossed with fresh leafy greens and creamy orange-ginger dressing is delicious and so easy to make!
With winter abound, this healthy winter salad recipe with oranges, pomegranate seeds and quinoa is a great way to enjoy some of the winter fruits while they are in season. Colorful, flavorful and filling, this salad will be sure to brighten your winter days!
This simple, vibrant winter salad is perfect for a light lunch or dinner, and special enough for to be adapted for parties, potlucks and family & friend gatherings. It’s easy to make and will be ready in 15 minutes or less!
The creamy orange-ginger dressing is so light and refreshing. It’s like eating an orange creamsicle with ginger added. The flavors of the fruits along with the quinoa and bed of greens all mingle together creating a truly fantastic vegan winter salad, that’s fresh, vibrant and healthy!
Winter Salad Ingredients
The ingredients for this winter salad are very simple, but it’s full of flavor – especially with the delicious creamy orange-ginger dressing!
- Leafy greens of choice
- Cooked quinoa
- Oranges – Mandarine, clementines or navel
- Pomegranates
- Red Onion
- Fresh mint
- Cashews
- Ginger
- Apple cider vinegar
- Garlic
- Salt & Pepper
Orange Ginger Dressing
The orange ginger dressing is super easy to make, and whips up in about 1 minute. You can optionally soak the cashews if you like. I usually do the quick soak method in hot water for 5 minutes, making soaking cashews quick and easy. And my favorite tool for small dressings like this is a personal blender, like this NutriBullet <affiliate link>. It works fast, cleans up well, and doesn’t take up much space.
This winter salad is:
- Quick and easy to make
- Only 10 ingredients
- Super flavorful
- Colorful and delicious
If you love easy salads, be sure to take a look at this Roasted Butternut Squash Salad, Autumn Wheat Berry & Butternut Squash Salad, or this delicious Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpea & Golden Beet Salad!
If you try this vegan winter salad recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintWINTER SALAD + CREAMY ORANGE-GINGER DRESSING
This healthy, delicious winter salad is paired with a homemade creamy orange-ginger dressing. Easy to prepare and ready in 15 minutes!
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Total Time: 15 min
- Yield: Serves 3 1x
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: Vegan
Ingredients
- 5 oz. leafy greens of choice (I used a spring mix)
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 3 tablespoons pomegranate seeds
- 3 tangerine or cuties (mandarins), slices
- 1 tablespoon red onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped
Orange-Ginger Dressing
- 1/2 cup cashews, soaked* (see notes)
- 1/4 cup water + more as needed
- juice of 1 orange
- 1 – 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, to taste
- 1 inch knob fresh ginger, chopped or grated
- 1/2 small clove garlic
- himalayan salt & pepper, to taste
Instructions
Orange-Ginger Dressing: Place all ingredients into food processor/blender and process until creamy. For a thinner dressing add 1 tablespoon water at a time until desired consistency. Taste for flavor, add the other half of the garlic clove if needed. Makes about 3/4 cup. Store leftovers in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 5 – 6 days.
Salad: Peel the oranges, and slice width wise into 1/4 inch slices, or simply break them up into wedges. Serve individual salads with 1/3 of the leafy greens, 1/3 cup of cooked quinoa, 1 tablespoons pomegranate seeds, 1 teaspoon red onion, slices of 1 tangerine and chopped mint. Add a helping of dressing over top, mix together and enjoy!
NOTES:
For a simple single serving dressing, use the juice of two squeezed oranges and add a tablespoons of fresh minced ginger, mix and top on your salad.
Cashews can be soaked a couple ways:
- Soak in cool water for 2 – 3 hours.
- Soak in hot water for 5 minutes.
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT: I love my NutriBullet for small jobs like making dressing (affiliate links). For more of my favorite cooking tools, shop my kitchen essentials.
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lysa jordan says
Yum! This dressing sounds delicious, I would love a little nutty creamy something on my salad in a very near future. I will try your recipe!
Julie says
Bon appetit! :)
TheCookieFairy says
Wow. Perfect. Simply perfect. I'm writing the ingredients needed for this recipe on my shopping list and making this next week. Thanks for this great recipe!
Julie says
It's a wonderful combination…enjoy! :)
heatherscreativeconcoctions says
This looks festive and I love anything ginger and orange:)I will have to try a cashew based dressing, great idea!
Julie says
Please do, I think this will be a great fit for you. I'm finding that nuts are extremely versatile, and here in this dressing the cashews add a nice creaminess. Enjoy!
Shari says
Thank you for this! I just made the dressing and significantly decreased the fresh ginger and it is delicious! Did you really use 2-3 tablespoons? I used about 1 teaspoon and it was plenty gingery for my taste. BTW, I happened across you blog for the first time a few weeks ago. Your recipes look great and I can't wait to try more!
Julie says
Your so welcome! I'm a little obsessed with certain herbs and spices and ginger is one of them…I have to say this wasn't always the case but I have a fond ginger tooth these days and actually used 3 tablespoons. Glad you started with a smaller amount and didn't overpower it for yourself…good instinct!
I'm glad to have crossed paths and would love to hear you thoughts on anything else you try. I'm excited to share these tasty, healthy recipes and hope everyone enjoys them as much as I do! Cheers :)