Crispy Winter Fenland Celery and Fennel Salad with Cranberries and Orange

Serves 4Preparation: 20 minsCook: none

A perfect crunchy and varied salad for a winter buffet, serve with cold meats and baked potatoes to bring out the array of wonderful flavours.

celery coldslawCrispy winter slaw - Fenland celery, cranberries, orange, fennel and onion in a maple and orange dressingGroup-1@2x-300x300.fw

Ingredients

6 sticks Fenland celery, thinly sliced at an angle, reserve green leaves
1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1 red onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced
1 Pink Lady apple, thinly sliced
2 oranges, remove zest before cutting away the skin, thinly sliced
for the maple and orange dressing
150g cranberries
3 tbsp maple syrup
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsps orange juice

Step by step

  1. First make the dressing by placing the cranberries in a small saucepan with the maple syrup, cook until softened a little but still holding their shape, cool. Mix together the olive oil, vinegar, lemon and orange juice and the cooled cranberries.
  2. Mix together the Fenland celery, fennel and red onion, pile onto a serving platter, add the Pink Lady apple slices and oranges.
  3. Pour over the dressing, lightly toss together and serve sprinkled with some torn green leaves from the Fenland celery and the reserved orange zest.

Cook’s tip: Fenland celery is a heritage variety of celery grown in the Cambridgeshire Fens. In 2013, Fenland celery was awarded Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status and joined the ranks of Parma ham, Champagne and Melton Mowbray Pork Pies. Fenland celery is only grown in small pockets of Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk using traditional farming methods. The deep, peaty soils in the Fens work towards giving Fenland celery its nutty-sweet flavour and paler colour. Fenland celery is available from October to December and can be found in Waitrose, Ocado, Wholefoods and Marks & Spencer.