This salad is a must to include in your Christmas festivities. It is absolutely delicious! The combination of all of these ingredients creates something so divine you'll want to make it over and over throughout the whole year. A great main salad that will go ideally with some turkey and some cooked potatoes.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 kg green beans
• ½ radicchio 
• 100g pine nuts

Caramelised onion:

• ½ red onion (use the whole onion if you would like extra sweetness in your salad)
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar
• 25g butter

Raspberry and thyme dressing:

• 3 tbsp raspberry vinegar 
• ½ bunch fresh thyme 
• ¼ cup olive oil

• salt and pepper

METHOD

1. To blanch the green beans prepare a large pot of water and bring to the boil. Meanwhile remove the ends from the green beans then rinse the beans with water. Once the pot of water is boiling, add a large pinch of salt then transfer all the green beans into the boiling water (if you don’t have a large enough pot, you can do this process in two batches). Blanch the greens for 30 seconds then drain the beans and place them into a bowl of cold water with ice or just in a bowl with cool water. Shortly after, drain the beans again, dry them then transfer them into a bowl and into the fridge to keep them crunchy and cool. 
2. Slice the red onion finely. Heat a pan and add the butter. On a medium heat cook the onion slowly, stirring it quite often. Continue to then cook on a low medium heat, until the onion is transparent and soft. Add some balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar and a small pinch of salt. Cook for approximately 15 minutes in total then set aside. 
3. Meanwhile heat another separate pan on a high heat and and once hot add the pine nuts. Stirring the pine nuts continuously, so as not to burn them. Cook until the surface of the nuts are golden and they produce a delicious aroma! Set aside. 
4. Make the dressing by combining the raspberry vinegar, the fresh thyme, the olive oil and the salt + pepper in a small jar or bowl. Use a small whisk or fork to mix the ingredients for the dressing, until the olive oil has thickened, this will take just a few seconds if you whisk it quickly. Adjust the seasoning. Set aside. 
5. Separate the radicchio leaves, rinse and dry. Slice the leaves either in half or into quarters. 
6. Place the green beans, the radicchio, the caramelised onion, the pine nuts into a large bowl. Toss through well. When ready to serve, add the dressing over the top and toss through well again. Taste and add any extra seasoning. 

Note:

• You can prepare the green beans the day before. Keep the in the fridge so that they stay cool and crunchy.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Serves: 6-8

Recipe by Anastasia Zolotarev. Click here to see her blog.