Who else is fully embracing the Christmas season?! 🎄🙋🏻 This is my favorite time of the year and we are just loving it! I have already inundated you with dessert recipes, and the chocolatey, sugary goodness is far from finished. However, today I’m bringing you a healthier holiday recipe that showcases my favorite winter produce item…pomegranates!
To me, salad is a must-have side dish at any and every gathering where a meal is involved. It ensures that no matter what someone’s dietary restrictions may be, there will be something for them to eat. This Pomegranate Vinaigrette is the perfect homemade salad dressing for your winter salads! It’s packed with fresh pomegranate seeds and a dash of lemon juice, giving it a sweet and tangy flavor! This Pomegranate Vinaigrette is gluten, dairy & refined sugar free! And it’s paleo and vegan, so it’s perfect for any and every person who will dine at your table this season! Oh, and did I mention that it’s ready in 5 minutes or less!
When I say that pomegranates are our favorite winter produce item I am not exaggerating. Recently, we bought 3 cases of poms from Costco…and ate them all within two weeks. I am well aware that the thing that keeps most people from buying pomegranates is how much work they are to deseed {and consequently eat}. Well this video called The Fastest Way to De-Seed a Pomegranate changed my life. I literally can have 6 giant pomegranates ready to eat in under 10 minutes thanks to this method! Plus, if I’m having a bad day whacking a pomegranate as hard as I can with a wooden spoon is a great way to let out all sorts of emotions! 😉
This recipe is super straight forward. Just toss everything in your Vitamix {or other high powered blender} and blend away! Salad dressing is a condiment that I always make at home…because it’s SO easy! Plus, by ditching store-bought varieties you will know exactly what is in your dressings {and be able to pronounce all the ingredients}, which is always a great thing!
This Pomegranate Vinaigrette is packed full of nutrition! Don’t negate the health benefits of a giant bowl of green goodness by loading it with unhealthy dressing! Making your own dressing is a great way to nourish your body before loading it full of Christmas cookies!
Pomegranate Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- ¾ cup pomegranate seeds
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 TBS lemon juice
- 1 TBS white balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- pinch of sea salt
Instructions
- Put all ingredients in your Vitamix (or other high-powered blender).
- Blend on low speed and gradually increase to high.
- Continue blending on high for 30-60 seconds or until your dressing is smooth and all pomegranate seeds have been blended.
#Eat Seasonal December
This Pomegranate Vinaigrette recipe comes to you as part of one of my favorite times of the month…our Eat Seasonal recipe group! Every month an amazing group of bloggers joins together to encourage all of our wonderful readers to eat seasonally!
My sweet friend Becky over at The Vintage Mixer posts seasonal produce guides every month to showcase the beautiful fruits and vegetables that are fresh and available to cook and bake with! Check out her December Seasonal Recipe Guide to learn what’s in season {hello pomegranates}!
So here it is…a treasure trove of beautiful recipes that are perfect to make in December from some seriously talented bloggers! Click on the links below for some December cooking inspiration! Join in the fun by tagging your photos with #eatseasonal!
Roasted Persimmon Ice Cream by Cafe Johnsonia
Pomegranate Vinaigrette by Joy Food Sunshine
Potato Leek Soup with Italian Sausage by Completely Delicious
Winter Greens with Pomegranate Seeds and Olives by Letty’s Kitchen
Asian Kale Power Salad by She Likes Food
Crunchy Apple-Pear Salad with Pomegranate, Pine Nuts & Yogurt by Simple Bites
Pesto Pasta with Crispy Brussels Sprouts and Bacon by Vintage Mixer
Winter Fruit and Yogurt Breakfast Bowls with Gingerbread Granola by Floating Kitchen
Mini Cranberry Orange Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crust by Flavor the Moments
Beet and Root Vegetable Tian with Apple Cider Reduction by Food for my Family
If you want to stay connected or you make something from JoyFoodSunshine I would love to see your creations! #joyfoodsunshine
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This looks so dreamy and delectable!!!! 100% MUST on any holiday salad!!
Thank you Chelsey!
This vinaigrette is just beautiful and I love that you used whole pomegranate arils and not just juice! I need to pull out the VitaMix and make this!
Thank you Marcie! I love the added nutrition from using the whole aril!
How gorgeous is this dressing to just look at?? So pretty. It also sounds delicious and would be great on top of so many different salads.
Thank you Brynn! I’m loving it on all my salads lately!
The flavors of the season, it’s so bright and beautiful! I definately have to whip some up this week, great ingredients!
Love using the whole seed! So much nutrition!
Love this dressing–it’s dreamy pink color especially. Salads save the day! Pinning this one…
LOL yes salads do save the day!
I make a homemade strawberry dressing in the summer that I adore, so I can only imagine how much I would love this Pom dressing! Not to mention it makes for such a gorgeous color on top of the greens!!
Kat recently posted…Peppermint Mocha Bread [ Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free]
OoOo strawberry dressing sounds divine too!
Such a fresh and vibrant dressing- it looks so pretty! And yay for Vitamix, as you know I love mine too 🙂
Sonali- The Foodie Physician recently posted…2016 Holiday Gift Guide
Thank you Sonali! Vitamix lovers unite!
Love the color! I’m a big fan of fruit-based dressings and this is a wonderful winter-version. Pinned for later 🙂
Yes! I love the natural sweetness that comes from fruit!
This might just bet he prettiest salad dressing I’ve ever seen! That color is just gorgeous! I agree, salad is always a must at the dinner table and I’m pretty sure everyone would happily enjoy it as long as it has this dressing on it 🙂
Thank you Izzy! I always start our meals with a huge salad! <3
Yes, de-seeding a pomegranate that way is a great stress reliever! haha
This pomegranate vinaigrette is such a pretty color! Perfect for a holiday side dish salad! Would love this on top of my winter salads too!
Lindsay Cotter recently posted…Easy Chocolate Christmas Cake {Vegan, Paleo}
LOL Lindsay YES! I used to loathe de-seeding poms, but now I love it! 😉
I’m in full on holiday mode too! And yes to always having salads on hand – I need my fill of veggies along with all the other deliciousness! Love how gorgeous this is, too – so festive 😉 Pinned! XO
Yes! Need the veggies to offset the cookies! 😉
The color of this is just sensational! I can’t wait to try it. AND apparently I really need to improved on how I de-seed pomegranates. That video probably just changed my life for the better. Lol.
Seriously Liz it changed my life!
Love how beautiful this is!! I too can’t buy store bought dressing but I tend to make the same one over and over! This is a great new idea for me 🙂
I tend to stick to an easy favorite too! But this is definitely a fun change!
The BEST kind of salad dressings are the homemade ones that have oils and vinegars, and this Pomegranate would just take it to the VERY top; it looks absolutely amazing Laura!
Thank you Emily! I agree I love homemade dressings!
This dressing is absolutely gorgeous!! I’ve never thought to blend pomegranate for dressing. It sounds amazing!
That’s why I love my Vitamix so much! I can make delicious whole foods recipes in seconds! 🙂
This dressing sounds so flavorful, and I love the color!!
Thank you Tara!
I bet this pomegranate vinaigrette tastes as great as it looks! With that gorgeous color, it will be a perfect addition to the holiday table with a big salad!
Taylor Kiser recently posted…Skillet Peppermint Vegan Brownie
This vinaigrette looks like you can stick a straw in it!
LOL I won’t judge…
I can’t get over how stunning this dressing is! Beauty and healthy brawn – definitely a winning combo.
Thank you Alisa! It has become one of my favorite winter dressings!
The color in this is on point! Love how fresh it is. Can’t wait to try this.
Thank you Julie!
This looks delicious, the color is perfect! I sure need a Vitamix!
I think everyone needs a Vitamix! LOL!
Is there anyway to make this oil free? I am oil free vegan and I would love to use this dressing it looks so good. Thank you.
Hey Carrie….hmmm…I’ve been thinking about this question all day. You could try substituting water for the olive oil…although I fear it could lack some flavor. If you want a creamier dressing you could also try almond or coconut milk, although it could taste more like a smoothie than a salad dressing! LOL! I haven’t tried using anything other than oil, so it would be a total experiment on your behalf if you did! 😉 If you do give it a whirl let me know how it goes!
I tried it without oil and used water. It was fantastic and didn’t compromise on the consistency. I also made a batch with olive oil and thought it tasted too much like olive oil. I am oil free and suspected it was just my heightened tastebuds so I had a non vegan try both. They loved both and confirmed that the batch with the olive oil didn’t taste too “olive oily” and it was very tasty. Surprisingly comparing the consistency of the two batches proved there wasn’t very much difference between them. So for all oil free plant based eaters or vegan’s; go for this recipe without oil-you will love it and so will your non vegan friends! Thanks for a great recipe!!!
this looks way too delicious and tastes delicious as well. Tried it with my husband and turned out to be super delicious. thanks for sharing
Legit speechless, this pomegranate vinaigrette recipe looks unreal!! I’m also gonna pin this post on my Pinterest board my followers will love it. Thanks for sharing Laura!