Fennel is a newly developed favourite for me. It meets all of my criteria for my grocery list: it’s cheap, it’s healthy, and it’s versatile. It’s taste isn’t bland but it doesn’t over-power other ingredients. It can be eaten raw, fried, roasted…ok, you get the point. I like it.

This recipe is great for lunches because it doesn’t have any wilty greens in it—you can just throw the dressing on top, shake it up in a container, and take it over the next few days as a fresh side. Given that I’ve eaten cereal and bananas for lunch over the past few days, this was a nice change.

For the dressing, the ingredients I listed can be changed for any oil/vinegar mix you have in your pantry. I had these super fancy sounding ones, so I used those. The flavour may vary a bit if you decide to go with olive oil and white vinegar instead, but I don’t think it would be bad. I used this purple basil vinegar that my aunt Nancy made a while back; it’s been getting used a lot in my house, but this was one of the best uses yet. Mixed with the hazelnut oil, which pairs well with naturally sweet foods, it worked really well.

I decided against doing a Christmas Cookie Roundup this year since I had some other things on the go, but I do have some big changes coming in the new year that I think you’ll all benefit from. I’m excited to share a new sponsor next week as well!

Ingredients

Serves 4 as a side

• 1 bulb fennel, trimmed and thinly sliced (I used a mandolin but it’s more than doable with a sharp kitchen knife)
• 1 whole orange, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup fresh dill, broken into small pieces
• 1/2 cup fresh pomegranate seeds
• 1/4 cup hazelnut oil
• 1 tsp. purple basil vinegar
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

Method

In a large bowl, toss together fennel, orange and dill. Gently fold in pomegranate seeds.

In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, lemon juice and pepper. Drizzle over salad and toss to ensure it’s well coated. Serve alongside your favourite veggie burger, soup, or eat as a main dish. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.