A Sunny Citrus Salad

This refreshing Orange and Grapefruit Salad gives a sweet taste of sunshine.

We love a taste test at our house. Apples (see more about our Applesauce Addiction), dates (we once bought every kind of date that Harrod’s in London had to offer – and that was a lot of dates), cookie recipes…. We’re just always on the lookout for the best fill-in-the-blank.

And when January brings all the gorgeous citrus to our stores, we get caught up in which oranges or grapefruit or lemons we like best. What that looks like: I’ll buy one of each variety of orange, keep the stickers on them so that we know what’s what, and line them up, sectioned, for everyone to try. We get our orange fixes, and then we know what varieties to buy for the rest of the season. Have you ever tried the tiny, bite-sized kishu Mandarin oranges? Totally addictive.

I’ll admit this habit is somewhat obsessive and also might be seen by some as downright dippy. Oh well. It’s led us to one of our favorite salads, one that keeps our New Year’s resolutions going strong but also gives us a sweet, juicy taste of, well, sunshine. That’s how our Orange and Grapefruit Salad tastes – sunny. 

Once again, this isn’t really a recipe kind of recipe. It’s throwing together whatever citrus you decide you like best (ahem, taste tests) with a little fresh mint for zing and some dried cranberries for a sweet and chewy bite. We supreme the fruit – meaning we take the membranes off the fruit, leaving juicy segments that pop in your mouth. Eating this Orange and Grapefruit Salad, you will be transported to sunnier, warmer climes, and since oranges and grapefruit fit into your healthy New Year plans, you might even think about pulling out a bathing suit in January.

Orange and Grapefruit Salad

Play with the ratios of grapefruit to orange to cranberry to mint here, so that you wind up with a salad you love.

Ingredients: 

3 Ruby Red grapefruit 
3 oranges 
¼ cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoons minced fresh mint

Recipe directions:

Supreme the oranges and grapefruit: Cut off the ends of the fruit at the top and bottom (where the stem was). Stand the fruit up on one of the cut ends, and, with a sharp knife, slice the peel and white pith off by cutting down the fruit, from one end to the other. Hug the curve of the fruit with the knife so that you leave as much fruit as possible in tact. As close to the membrane as you can get, use your knife to release the fruit from the membrane. Do the same thing on the other side of the segment, so that the two cuts meet and the segment is freed from the membrane. Do this all around the fruit until all the segments are released, then place the segments in a bowl and squeeze the leftover membranes over the fruit to release the juice.

Carefully fold in the cranberries and mint. Refrigerate for at least an hour, so that the cranberries plump and release their sugar into the oranges and grapefruit.