Remember those sweet and spicy pepitas I made recently? If you have any left from your snacking, you can use them in this spicy citrus salad to add a little spice to some sweet oranges, tangerines or grapefruit. The oranges in the picture are Cara Cara’s, a type of naval orange and my favorite orange. If you haven’t tried one, you don’t know what you’re missing! I can find them at my local co-op as well as Costco during December and January so I try to eat as many as I can. They make great afternoon snacks and salads.
Below is a very simple salad of orange slices, sweet and spicy pepitas, an herb or two and a simple dressing.
Spicy Citrus Salad
A very simple salad with few ingredients but lots of flavor. Great as a light lunch or as a side for spicy foods.
You will need to make these sweet and spicy pepitas the day before.
- 1 orange or other citrus*, peeled, sliced or wedged
- Choice of fresh herb (my favorites are dill weed, cilantro, or mint)
- About 1 Tbsp. sweet and spicy pepitas*
- Touch of sea salt
- Honey or Maple Salad Dressing
- 1 Ā½ tsp. honey or maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
- 2 Tbsp. canola oil
- In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the salad dressing.
- Arrange the orange slices on a plate.
- Top with the chopped herbs, pepitas, and sprinkle with a touch of sea salt.
- Drizzle lightly with the dressing.
Sweet and Spicy Pepitas (Pumpkin Seeds)
Ā
The Orange – Any sweet orange like Cara Cara is needed or you could use a mix of citrus, like 2 types of oranges and grapefruit.
Ā
Ā
Even though this salad has a bit of spiciness to it due to the pepitas, it is a wonderful complement to spicy foods. The standard side for traditional New Mexican foods is a simple salad of chopped tomatoes and shredded lettuce. However, I have found that citrus is a great heat reducer. So when I make a plate of enchiladas or burritos, anything smothered in red or green chile, I usually serve a little citrus on the side like this salad. The citrus tends to reduce the burn of a spicy chile sauce.
Here are a few other simple citrus dishes in which you can use Cara Cara oranges or other types of citrus:
Pingback: Orange and Cabbage Slaw | MJ's Kitchen
Pingback: Citrus Salad with Toasted Seeds and Maple Dressing Recipe | MJ's Kitchen
Thanks for the marvelous posting! I definitely enjoyed
reading it, you happen to be a great author.I will be sure to bookmark your blog
and will eventually come back in the foreseeable future.
I want to encourage that you continue your great work, have a nice weekend!
Easy peasy and full of flavor. Love it.
We love citrus salads and usually add a crunch. We have never tried pumpkin seeds, so that will be our next adventure. Thanks.
I love the color of that orange MJ, I thought it was a grapefuit.
Thank you for sharing this amazing salad
What a beautiful salad! I see those pepitas…you must have saved some for the salad. š This would be perfect for my lunch until the next diet-busting celebration.
What a good way of using your sweet & spicy pepitas, MJ! I love this – so simple and light, but delicious!
What a gorgeous fruit and fantastic salad!
I love entree salads…I am making note of this recipe to try it soon, maybe with the addition of chicken.
Thanks everyone for your comments! Gotta take advantage of the fresh citrus while we can. š Enjoy!
Wow! What a fabulous combination. I can tell before tasting it that I will love this one. Yum!
They do have the color of grapefruits! I adore citrus salads and love this one, they brighten up the coldest days š
Lovely and refreshing salad. The addition of pumpkin seeds sounds a great for texture.
Hi MJ, I am so glad that you put this on Foodbuzz. Buzzed you. Keep putting them on.
Lovely! š It looks delightfully fresh and pretty! The pumpkin seeds are an unusual addition.
This sounds really refreshing. I can see it with toast or hotcakes at breakfast or with a toastite sandwich at lunch. (I found my press) Of course at our house I would have to find a substitute for the pumpkin seeds due to allergies. Maybe just have the oranges alone with the dressing? Either way, I’ll try it soon. Oh, and I love it that you now have a link to print out the recipes. Very cool. I’ve already used it.
WooHoo! You found your press! I love my toastite and yes, I bet this does go great with a taostite sandwich! Yeh – Just leave off the seeds. This salad doesn’t need much if you have good oranges! Glad you like the fact that I added ‘print this’! It took me a while. š
Your salad looks delicious. I just love a wonderful Citrus Salad in the winter, it is so refreshing. Hope you are having a great week end and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
What a lovely and delicious salad! My m-i-l lives in California and often makes citrus salads from the fruit from their trees – I have never seen anybody else do it before, but I know they are wonderful. Thank you for sharing this with the Gallery of Favorites.
What a great use for those sweet and spicy pepitas! I love that citrus is in season!
Love it! So pretty. Thanks for linking it at Weekend Potluck. I’m pinning.
This salad look wonderful – I love the sweet and spicy flavours you have used and the different types of citrus. We get blood oranges this time in the UK (they are a gorgeous colour and very sweet) and I think I will use them in this salad. I’d love it if you would share this post with the Gallery of Favourites – it’s a lovely taste of sunshine in the winter!
I loved to taste this salad with blood oranges! I bet it’s fabulous! Thanks for the invite to your gallery. The link has been made.
MJ, this citrus salad looks fresh and tasty. I have navel oranges in my backyard but not that type. I have grapefruit also and those oranges look like the grapefruit. Beautiful color. Have a happy weekend.
Lovely salad MJ!I love your addition of spicy pepitas, adds a nice crunch and spice!Yum..
Simple, clean and flavorful…very nice!
What a stunning salad! I really like not only the spicy/sweet but the textural differences!
I have to, have to, have to try this. I tried to make the Ensalada de Noche Buena from Cooking Light and it was horrible but I loved the idea of doing a citrus salad. I’m definitely going to need to give your a shot, it seem infinitely tastier.
I definitely hope it’s tastier! I haven’t seen the CL salad, but now I’m curious. Hope you do get a chance to make and find it quite enjoyable!
This looks simple and useful — just the thing for citrus season. Thank you.
This looks so fresh and hydrating MJ not to mention an ideal dose of vitamin C. I like the dots of green herbs and the honey dressing… your spicy pepitas are perfect here! (when I first looked at the photo I thought it was grapefruit which would be equally delicious with your sweet and spicy pepitas…)
Yes, grapefruit works great! In fact, a couple nights ago we used both the Cara Cara and a pink grapefruit. It was delicious!
This is such a vibrant and fresh dish for wintertime. Thank goodness we have citrus this time of year!
STUNNING!! I made something similar with grapefruit and really enjoyed it.. love the dressing!
MJ, this citrus salad looks like a plate full of sunshine!! I love the dressing too.. simple yet with that punch of rice wine vinegar to give it a little tang. š Simply lovely!! Have a great weekend. ~ Ramona
This looks so delightful! Just the thing to brighten this dreary day we’re having. The cara cars oranges are just stunning!
I love citrus salads, and yours, with that sweet and spicy dressing, looks perfect!
I first thought it’s pink grapefruits but this is orange! What a beautiful color! Do you think it works with regular orange? I know it’s not the same. I really hope to find this special orange! Fruit salad is always a big hit in my house compared to leafy salad (don’t know why kids don’t like them!). Thanks for sharing this lovely and delicious salad!
Actually Nami, regular orange would work fine. I’ve even use clementines. The problem with them was picking out the seeds, but it was still good.
Lovely salad. Love it.
I was going to say – what a fantastic coloured orange… I’ve never seen that type of orange around here alas… maybe I can use a grapefruit instead š This is the second citrus salad I’ve seen recently – it looks so fresh and light. Bet it makes a wonderful light snack or lunch š
Hey Charles, Grapefruit works great! I’ve tried it. š
What a lovely salad…
I love making salad with oranges too, I feel they always add something special to the platter. Right?
You know somehow till now I have not been able to find these oranges but will try more.