A festive and delicious orange and pomegranate salad with seasonal citrus, tender spinach, and creamy rosemary-buttermilk dressing.
To make dressing, whisk to combine shallot, zest, juice, vinegar, mustard, rosemary, and salt. Set aside for 5 minutes, then whisk in the buttermilk. Whisking vigorously, add the olive oil in a slow drizzle. Set dressing in the fridge while you prep the other ingredients.
To prep the citrus, slice the top and bottom off of the oranges. With downward strokes, carefully slice off the peel, removing white pith while sparing as much flesh as possible. Cut peeled oranges into 1/2-inch thick slices.
To prep the pomegranate, use a shallow cut to slice to top off. Examine the pomegranate, and make 4 shallow lengthwise cuts along the edges where you see the papery divisions between segments. Use the back of the knife to knock the pomegranate all over and loosen arils. Separate segments and gather arils.
In a medium bowl, toss spinach with several spoonfuls of dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Spread dressed spinach on a large platter and tuck oranges throughout. Scatter with pomegranate arils and sliced shallots. (You may not be able to use all of the arils - reserve those for another use.) Finish with a final drizzle of dressing, a scattering of rosemary leaves, a pinch of sea salt, and several twists fresh pepper.
If needed, this salad can be prepped up to 30 minutes ahead, and keep chilling in the fridge. If you need to travel with the salad, prep the citrus, pomegranate, and dressing, and then assemble once you’ve arrived at your destination.