Mache & Fennel Salad

Crunchy, sweet, salty and crisp, this salad is a wonderful choice for special holiday dinners. The combonation of the citrus from the orange, the licorice flavor from the fennel and the sweet crunch from the shallots and pomegranate seeds make this holiday dish a palate pleaser.

Top a smaller serving of this salad with some seared bacon wrapped scallops for the ultimate holiday appetizer.

Ingredients

2 navel oranges supremed*
1 small shallot, finely minced to yield 1 teaspoon
1 lime
1 bulb fennel shaved thin
1 tablespoon of agave nectar (http://www.allaboutagave.com/)
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoon pomegranate seeds
3 ounces cleaned and dried mache greens
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Over a stainless steel mixing bowl, supreme* the flesh from 2 large navel oranges (the juice will serve as the base for the dressing).

*'Supremes' are sections of orange, a great trick to get just the orange and none of the seeds and membrane.

Cut the top and bottom off of an orange.

With your knife following the curve of the fruit cut away the skin.

Lay the orange on its side and cut the sections out leaving the connective membrane and you get beautiful 'supremed' slices or orange!

With a mandolin set to the thinnest setting, slice the white stalk of a cleaned and dry fennel bulb into paper thin slices, or simply cut the fennel bulb into thin slices with a sharp chefs knife.

In the bowl with the juice, supremed orange, and fennel addthe finely minced shallot, juice from half a lime, organic agave syrup, and good quality extra virgin olive oil.

Mix in the cleaned and sorted mache greens.

Carefully peel the thick skin of the pomegranate, and with a fork flake out the seeds or pry them out with your fingers. Fun for the kids!

Add the seeds to the salad mix.

Add salt and cracked black pepper to taste, and then set aside.