Orange, Spiced Walnut and Dried Cranberry Salad

swissms's Note:

Spiced cranberries top chilled orange slices for a sweet-tangy contrast in this colorful salad. From Bon Appetit, December 1997. I use pecans in place of walnuts.

• Total Time: 35 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 6 tablespoons honey
• 1 1/2 tablespoons water
• 3/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon generous ground ginger
• 1 cup walnut halves, and pieces
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup cranberry juice cocktail
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 8 oranges, peel and white pith removed, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rounds, chilled
• fresh mint sprig (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix first 5 ingredients in large bowl to blend. Add nuts; toss to coat well. Strain nuts, reserving liquid. Transfer nuts to baking sheet. Sprinkle nuts with sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 17 minutes. Cool completely.
2. Whisk 3/4 cup water, cranberry juice and reserved liquid from nuts in medium saucepan to blend. Stir in dried cranberries. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until cranberries soften and liquid is reduced to thin syrup, about 20 minutes. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Store nuts airtight at room temperature. Cover and chill cranberry mixture.)
3. Arrange orange slices on platter. Spoon cranberry mixture over. Sprinkle nuts over. Garnish with mint, if desired.

Reviews

[Batman's Chef]

I made this for a churchwide Thanksgiving dinner. It was simple and the spices made it just right for the holiday season. The only change I made was we used the little cutie oranges and peeled them then pulled them into sections. Delicious! Hope to make it with slices next time.

[Debbwl]

Very pretty! A wonderful combination of flavors and textures. Took to a Thanksgiving pot luck were people just could not wait and started nibbling on it even before things were set up and the other guest had arrived. The allspice and ginger are just the right amount of spice. Made as written using walnuts, but think next time will use pecans instead. A winner at the pot luck. Thanks for the post.