Spinach and Clementine Salad with Basil Pesto Dressing

Vibrant Salad Featuring Baby Spinach, Peeled Clementines, Avocado, Pomegranate, and Sourdough Croutons Tossed in a Sweet Basil Pesto Vinaigrette

This vibrant spinach and clementine salad combines fresh seasonal fruits, creamy avocado, crunchy pecans, and torn sourdough croutons with a basil pesto dressing.

The secret is peeling the clementine segments down to the bare juice vesicles to let the sweet citrus juices flow freely, marrying beautifully with the nutty pesto emulsion. Enjoy the recipe!

Recipe

Whisk Pesto Dressing: In a small bowl, combine basil pesto, extra-virgin olive oil, honey, salt, and pepper. Whisk vigorously until smooth and emulsified, then set aside.
Prep Produce: Lay baby spinach in a wide salad bowl. Top with peeled clementine or mandarin segments, pomegranate pearls, creamy avocado wedges, and delicate red onion rings.
Toast & Tear Sourdough: Toast artisanal sourdough bread until golden and crunchy. Let cool, then tear into rustic, bite-sized crouton chunks.
Toss & Serve: Right before serving, scatter sourdough croutons over the salad, pour the sweet basil pesto dressing over the top, and toss gently. Garnish with toasted pecans and serve immediately!

💡 Chef Notes & Tips

Preventing Avocado Browning: Toss freshly sliced avocado wedges directly with the clementine segments so the natural citric acid slows oxidation and keeps the green color bright.
Vegan Adaptation: Use a dairy-free basil pesto (crafted without Parmesan or Pecorino cheese) and substitute the honey in the dressing with pure organic maple syrup.

Ingredients

Yield: 3 servings

Vibrant Orchard & Garden Base

200g Fresh baby spinach leaves (or crisp leafy greens)
2 clementines or 3–4 mandarins (segmented and peeled to bare flesh)
¾ cup Fresh ruby pomegranate pearls & 1 Ripe avocado (sliced)
½ Red onion (peeled and sliced into delicate rings)

Crunch & Sweet Pesto Dressing

3 thick slices Artisanal sourdough loaf (toasted and torn into croutons)
⅓ cup Pecan halves (gently toasted)
¼ cup High-quality basil pesto (homemade preferred)
2–3 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil & 1 tbsp Pure organic honey
Fine sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)

About Chef Payal Thakurani

Payal Thakurani is a chef, culinary educator, consultant, author, and founder of Commune Kitchen Singapore and The Commune Table. With over a decade of experience teaching thousands of students from around the world, she is passionate about helping home cooks build confidence in the kitchen through a deeper understanding of techniques, ingredients, and the science behind great cooking.

Born in India and having lived in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Singapore for nearly three decades, Payal draws inspiration from the diverse culinary traditions and cultures she has encountered throughout her journey. Trained in boulangerie at Le Cordon Bleu, she combines professional techniques with practical, approachable teaching methods that empower students to recreate exceptional food at home.

Her recipes reflect a lifelong passion for food, travel, and learning, blending authentic flavours with a strong foundation in technique. Whether teaching sourdough, Chinese cuisine, fermentation, or regional Indian cooking, Payal’s philosophy remains the same: understand the fundamentals, and great cooking will follow naturally.

Join us for a cooking class