LIGHT-UP THE DAY WITH A GRAPEFRUIT SALAD

 

On an overcast winter day, citrus fruits are like rays of sunshine. Winter and citrus season are nearly finished. In another month the orange trees on Andalusian streets will bloom. Meanwhile I’ve got a cache of tangy-sweet pink grapefruits to light up the day. 

This grapefruit salad is all about contrasts, in texture, color, and flavors. Juicy grapefruit segments meet crunchy red cabbage and buttery avocados. Adding shrimp makes a salad substantial enough for a main dish. 

Grapefruit Salad with Avocado and Cabbage

Ensalada de Pomelo, Aguacate y Col Lombarda

A bright salad with grapefruit segments, red cabbage, avocado, spinach leaves, and shrimp.

Serve the salad on individual plates or

Two ways to serve the salad: 

Either combine the grapefruit, cabbage, avocado, and shrimp in a bowl, dress with extra virgin olive oil, and serve atop salad greens on individual salad plates 

scoop from a serving platter.

or arrange greens on a platter, top with layers of cabbage, grapefruit, avocado, and shrimp, and drizzle oil over all. 

Serves 4.

1 ½ cups finely shredded red cabbage

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar

3 pink grapefruits (approx. 10 ounces each)

2 medium firm-ripe avocados

1 cup small shelled and cooked shrimp

Extra virgin olive oil

Spinach leaves or other salad greens

Flaky salt

Garnish, as desired (pumpkin seeds, fresh herbs, black olives, hazelnuts, thinly sliced red onions)

Place the shredded cabbage in a bowl and sprinkle with salt and vinegar.

Use your hands to mix and massage the cabbage. Let it stand 30 minutes (or up to 1 hour) before combining with other ingredients.

Cut off peel and pith.

Use a thin knife to peel the grapefruits. Following the curve of the fruit, cut off skin and white pith. Working over a small bowl to collect the juice, cut segments free from membranes and place them in a bowl. Peel and remove pits from avocados. Slice the avocados crosswise. Place the slices in a bowl and spoon 1 tablespoon of grapefruit juice over them. (Save remaining grapefruit juice for another use.)

Serve the salad, dressed generously with olive oil, either mixed in a bowl or layered on a platter. Sprinkle flaky salt over all and garnish the salad as desired.

More citrus salads:

Winter Salad with Oranges and Squash.

Salad of Sweet Potatoes, Clementines and Fennel

Málaga Salad with Oranges, Potatoes and Cod.

Potato-Orange Dunking Salad.

Moroccan Orange and Date Salad.

Orange and Artichoke Salad.

Orange, Avocado and Fennel Salad.

Coleslaw with Sour Orange Vinaigrette.

Chopped Salad with Peppers and Tangerine (Pipirrana).

Lemon Salad with Mint.

CHRISTMAS DINNER WITH A SIDE OF CARDOONS

Cardoons for Christmas. (I should have tied a big red bow on it!)

Not cartoons! Cardoons, a vegetable that turns up at the festive Christmas Eve meal in Spanish homes. Known as cardo in Spanish, the cardoon and its close relative, the artichoke, are thistles. Of the artichoke, it is the flower bud that is eaten; of the cardoon. it is the tall stalks. The first time I ever saw cardoons was in the still-life paintings by Juan Sánchez Cotán (early 17th century). Structurally interesting, but are they edible?

Cardoons are grown in the northern regions of Aragón, La Rioja and Navarra, so that is where this vegetable is most popular at Christmas. But, last week when I spied the stately stalks at a local grocery store, I couldn’t resist having a go.

Remove strings from stalks.

Like artichokes, cardoons require quite a lot of prepping—stripping off prickly leaves and trimming away fibrous strings (much like celery). Next time I want to serve this unusual side dish, I’ll buy the cardoons en conserva, in jars, cleaned and cooked, ready for saucing.

Cardoons are delicious in almond sauce; in bechamel sauce with cheese gratin, with clams, wine and parsley in “green sauce.”

Another traditional vegetable at the Spanish Christmas table is col lombarda, red cabbage. Years ago, when I was doing a magazine article about how Spaniards and foreigners celebrate the holidays, I interviewed a Danish woman married to a Spaniard. With Christmas customs, she said, red cabbage was their only point of convergence—traditional for Christmas dinner both in Denmark and at her Madrid mother-in-law’s table. This vegetable is easy to prepare and adds festive color as well. Red cabbage goes especially well with roast pork, venison or goose.

Red cabbage adds festive color.

Cardoons with almond sauce, a side dish for Christmas.

Cardos en Salsa de Almendras
Cardoons with Almond Sauce

Serves 6-8.

2 lemons
1 ½ tablespoons flour
2-3 pounds cardoons
Salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup skinned almonds
2 cloves garlic
1 ½ cups chicken stock
Pimentón (paprika) or saffron to finish

Place the juice of 1 lemon in a bowl with about 4 cups of water. Cut the other lemon in half. Stir 1 tablespoon of the flour into ½ cup of water and add it to a large pot with 8 cups of water and 1 ½ teaspoons salt. Squeeze ½ lemon into the pot of water and add the lemon too.

To prepare the cardoons: Discard hard outer stalks. Separate all the stalks from the base. Use a knife or vegetable peeler to remove the strings on the outside of each stalk of cardoon and the thin skin on the inside of the stalks. Rub each stalk as it is peeled with the cut lemon. Cut it into 3-inch pieces and drop them into the bowl with lemon juice.

When the cardoons are prepared, bring the pan of water with the flour and lemon juice to a boil. Add the cardoons, cover and simmer until the cardoons are tender when pierced with a knife, 45 to 60 minutes.

Remove from heat and allow to cool in the cooking liquid. If cooking the cardoons in advance, refrigerate them with the cooking liquid. Drain well before proceeding with the recipe.

Heat the oil in a skillet and fry the almonds and garlic until they are lightly toasted and golden. Skim them out. Set aside a dozen almonds to use as garnish. Place the remainder in a blender with the garlic and some of the chicken stock. Blend until smooth.

Stir the remaining ½ tablespoon of flour into the oil in the skillet and let it cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the drained cardoons, the almond mixture from the blender, the remaining stock and ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste (if stock is salty, take care not to over-salt the sauce).

A few threads of saffron top the dish.

Cover and cook the cardoons gently about 30 minutes. Place in a serving bowl and scatter the reserved almonds on top. Serve hot sprinkled with pimentón (paprika) or, for an opulent touch, a few threads of golden saffron.

Red cabbage with prunes, another good side dish for a holiday meal.

Lombarda a la Castellana
Red Cabbage, Castillian Style

Red cabbage needs an acid ingredient—wine, citrus or vinegar—to keep its vibrant color while cooking. Adding sweet fruit such as raisins or prunes balances the acidity.

Serves 6.

½ red cabbage (1 ½-2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup finely chopped onion
½ cup white wine
4 prunes, pitted and sliced
1 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Cut out and discard the core. Shred the cabbage and set aside.

Heat the oil in a pan and sauté the onion for 3 minutes. Stir in the shredded cabbage and let it sauté 1 minute. Pour over the wine and mix well. Add the prunes, water, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is cooked to taste—20 minutes for slightly crunchy, 40 minutes for very tender.

Good with turkey, goose, pork or venison.

Looking for more about what Spaniards eat for Christmas? Have a look at Kaley’s blog. She’s a young American married to a Spaniard and living in Madrid.

¡Felices Fiestas! Happy Holidays. I hope you enjoy all the wonderful foods during this festive season.