This easy, festive Christmas wreath salad recipe is both beautiful and delicious! With cherry tomato “ornaments,” mozzarella pearl “snowballs,” delightful candied pecans and “Christmas light” pomegranate seeds, this salad wreath will get your whole family into the holly-jolly holiday spirit!
This salad is so much fun to put together! Just a little slicing, dicing, and dancing to Christmas music in the kitchen! If you already have candied pecans, it takes only 7 main ingredients to make!
If you would rather make your own though (highly suggested), try my stovetop candied pecans! They’re so easy, so tasty, and take only about 5 minutes!
To style this salad in a wreath shape, you’ll require a round serving platter or plate and a 6-ounce ramekin or small bowl to help you leave an empty circle in the middle. My wooden serving platter was 12.5 inches wide and the salad could easily serve 5 or 6 people.
For a suggested salad dressing, I highly recommend my apple cider vinaigrette! It’s made with a dash of sesame oil to really give it some originality!
Ingredient Notes
cherry tomatoes – Get the most colorful ones you can find. They look like little Christmas ornaments! I find a mix of yellow, red, and orange make the salad look so jolly!
pomegranate seeds – Also called “arils.” If you can’t find a pomegranate, you can substitute with dried cranberries. If you do want to use pomegranate, but you’re unsure how to properly de-seed one, take a look below for a little tutorial.
arugula – Feel free to use other salad greens if you like. I like arugula because of its peppery, spicy flavor, but a nice spring mix or baby spinach will do nicely too.
candied pecans – If you have trouble finding candied pecans in your food store, make them from scratch! My stovetop candied pecans recipe is a tiny bit spicy and a little bit smokey. So good!
mozzarella pearls – You’ll usually find these over in the “fancy” cheese section next to burrata and buffalo mozzarella if you don’t see it directly next to the standard mozzarella in your food store.
red onion – Feel free to substitute with shallots if you’d like a more mildly-oniony flavor.
How to De-Seed a Pomegranate
Some folks slice them in half and bang the dickens out of them with a spoon to remove the seeds quickly, but I find this just makes a mess and destroys a lot of them. If you have a little more time, try this method.
1. Slice just into the skin around the pomegranate with a sharp knife.
2. Push the knife about an inch into the part that sticks out.
3. Use your thumbs to gently open the pomegranate and remove the seeds. It takes less time than you make think. They often come out in sections if you’re gentle.
How to Make This Festive Salad – Step by Step
1. Slice 1 cucumber into half-inch slices, then in quarters.
2. Slice 10 oz. cherry tomatoes in half.
3. Slice 1 small red onion into thin rings.
4. If you don’t have ½ cup candied pecans, follow my recipe for easy stovetop candied pecans.
5. On a 12.5-inch round platter or plate, place a 6 oz. ramekin or small bowl in the center and circle with 5 oz. arugula.
6. Place sliced onions first, then cucumbers and pecans.
7. Place cherry tomatoes nicely on top, and sprinkle with ¼ cup pomegranate seeds (arils).
8. Stagger ½ cup mozzarella pearls nicely between veggies, pomegranate seeds and pecans.
A Few Tips
1. You can make this salad hours before your party, as long as it’s covered with tight cellophane and placed back in the fridge. Arugula tends to wilt quickly when unrefrigerated.
2. If you can’t find mozzarella pearls, feta works just as well. You might just want to make nice, big chunks of cheese to give it the same “snowball” effect.
3. Again, if you really want to make this salad fa-la-la-la-fabulous, make those candied pecans from scratch! But try your best not to eat them before guests arrive!
4. You can use my favorite Apple Cider Vinaigrette dressing for this salad, or any non-creamy dressing. If you use a creamy dressing, it might look a little messy since it’s already got so much going on.
I hope you love this salad as much as I do! Have a lovely holiday!
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A Little More Holiday Inspiration
Christmas Wreath Salad with Candied Pecans
Equipment
- 1 12.5 inch round platter
- 1 small bowl a 6 ounce ramekin works well
- 1 sharp knife & cutting board
- 1 sauté pan optional – if making candied pecans from scratch
Ingredients
- 1 cucumber – sliced into thin quarters
- 10 oz. cherry tomatoes – sliced in half
- 1 small red onion – thinly sliced into rings
- ½ cup candied pecans
- ¼ cup pomegranate seeds (arils)
- 5 oz. arugula
- ½ cup mozzarella pearls
Instructions
- On a 12.5-inch round platter or plate, place a 6 oz. ramekin or small bowl in the center, and circle with 5 oz. arugula.
- Place sliced onions first, then sliced cucumbers and ½ cup candied pecans.
- Place sliced cherry tomatoes nicely on top, and sprinkle with ¼ cup pomegranate seeds (arils).
- Stagger ¼ cup mozzarella pearls nicely between veggies, pomegranate seeds and pecans.
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