This Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad is such a fun alternative to boring salads. The grilled radicchio is served with lettuce, juicy orange segments and crunchy pecans which are all tossed in a cinnamon dressing. The flavour combination sounds strange but is absolutely delicious. This salad can be served as a light appetizer or side salad and is Paleo, Vegan, Grain Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Whole30. 

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing
I’m always looking for fun new dressings to use on lettuce based salads. Apart from creamy dressings, I have been struggling to create anything memorable that was worthy of a post. That is until I tried experimenting with cinnamon, and it was a total game changer.

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing
I can’t believe I’ve never added cinnamon to a salad dressing before, it’s INCREDIBLE! Slightly spicy and with a warming undertone, this is the perfect dressing to jazz up a salad.

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing
The base of this salad is a combination of lettuce and grilled radicchio. I’ve never been a big fan of radicchio and find that when eaten raw the bitter flavour can be really overpowering. When radicchio is grilled the bitterness really mellows out and becomes a mild nutty flavour.

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing
The radicchio and lettuce are then tossed with crunchy toasted pecans, chunks of juicy orange and shallots. I listed chopped dates as an optional addition to the salad as they do add a nice sweetness to counterbalance the radicchio, but for some, the sugariness may be too much.

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing
The cinnamon salad dressing is really the star of the show. The flavours pull everything in the salad together and make it a really unique and interesting dish. I would serve this as a side salad or appetizer, but you could add in some chicken to bulk it up and enjoy it as a main.

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing

Here are a few other great salad recipes:


If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!

Grilled Radicchio & Orange Salad with Cinnamon Dressing

5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Diets Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Grain Free, Paleo, Specific Carbohydrate Diet Legal, Vegan, Whole30
Servings 2

Ingredients
  

  • 2 heads radicchio cut into quarters lengthwise
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 orange cut into small pieces
  • 1/3 cup toasted pecans roughly chopped
  • 1 shallot finely diced
  • 3 cups lettuce
  • 1/4 cup chopped dates (optional)

Cinnamon Dressing

  • 2 tbsp orange juice
  • 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic crushed
  • 1/2 tbsp honey or maple syrup (omit for Whole30)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper

Instructions
 

  • Place the quarters of radicchio in a bowl and drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil. Toss to ensure that they are well coated and then place them onto a grill pan on medium heat for 5 minutes, flipping half way through cooking to ensure they have nice grill marks on all sides. Once cooked roughly shred. 
  • In a bowl whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing and then set aside. 
  • In a bowl start with a base of lettuce and then top with the shredded radicchio, pecans, orange pieces and diced shallots. Toss with the dressing right before serving. 
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below and let us know how it was!