Summer isn’t the only season you can enjoy fresh salads. Winter brings with it new salad ingredients that are tasty and packed with nutrients. They are the secret weapons that make winter recipes mouthwatering. They add vibrancy to any meal and provide a lot of inspiration. From different root vegetables and leafy greens to nuts and fruits, experimentation is easy. Here is how you can make scrumptious winter salad recipes using fresh, seasonal ingredients.

How to Make a Great Winter Salad

Winter salads are just as tasty as summer salads

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Start With Greens

Stay away from wilted lettuces and mixed salad greens flown in from far regions. Go for crisp cabbages, hearty greens, and crunchy chicories that are in season during winter. Dino kale and chard are also delicious when eaten raw although you may be used to cooking them. Buy greens with small leaves whenever you can and chop the leaves into bite-size pieces.

Add Crunchy Ingredients

Chicories and leafy greens have plenty of texture on their own but taste even better when mixed with other crunchy ingredients. Include pieces of fennel, slices of radish, coins of carrots, croutons, and nuts. These ingredients not only taste good, they exercise your teeth and jaws a little.

Winter salad

Image via: Inspired Edibles

Include Something Sweet

Some greens have a bitter edge and can greatly benefit from sweet components. Add sweet ingredients to make your winter salad pop in flavor and appeal. Use roasted beets or winter fruits like oranges, pears, dates, and kumquats. Dried fruits like cranberries, blueberries, and raisins also work well and add texture.

Sweet ingredients add flavor

Image via: Simply love food

Add Delicious Seasonings

Chicories and greens can handle many flavors including salt. Blue cheese, feta, and cojita make great matches for winter salads. Crumble them when adding them to the mixture. Olives are also good whether chopped or pitted. You can even whirl them right into the dressing.

While winter recipes don’t get their glow from ripe tomatoes and butter lettuce, they are packed with hearty greens, crunchy nuts, dried fruits, and salty cheese. This winter, banish those tasteless tomatoes from your salad and embrace the delightful greens the season has to offer. Remember that the secret to making great salads is simply knowing what’s in season.

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