Hanukkah recipe: Fresh herb salad with seeds

The Hanukkah menu revolves around oil -- it’s the symbol of the holiday. But that means when you’re planning a menu you need to think of a dish that will cut through some of that richness. Something like this light salad of bitter herbs and toasted seeds from cookbook writer Phyllis Glazer.

Fresh herb salad with seeds is one of the favorite holiday recipes we’ve collected in our “Los Angeles Times Holiday Handbook.” The book shares more than 110 seasonal recipes to help you celebrate Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year’s. We’ve also updated last year’s “Los Angeles Times Holiday Cookies,” so it now includes 65 recipes from a wide range of sources, including world-famous pastry chefs and home cooks.

Each book is $4.99. They are available at the Los Angeles Times bookstore for Kindle, Nook and iBooks.

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Fresh herb salad with seeds

Total time: 25 minutes

Servings: 4

1/2 cup fresh mint leaves

1 1/2 cups Italian parsley leaves

1 cup cilantro leaves

3/4 cup basil leaves, preferably purple basil, torn into pieces

4 cups chilled baby salad leaves

2 to 3 radishes, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons shelled sunflower seeds

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Juice of half lemon

Juice of half orange

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoon salt

Black pepper to taste

1. In a large bowl, toss together the mint, parsley, cilantro and basil, along with the salad leaves and sliced radishes.

2. Toast the sunflower seeds and sesame seeds separately in a dry frying pan over low heat, stirring frequently until just golden. Mix them together and add three-fourths of the mixture to the salad (save the rest for garnish), and toss to mix.

3. Combine the olive oil, lemon and orange juice, honey, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper in a screw-top jar and shake until smooth. Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired. This makes about one-third cup dressing.

4. Just before serving, transfer the salad to a large platter, sprinkle over the dressing, and garnish with the remaining sunflower and sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

Each serving: 141 calories; 4 grams protein; 9 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams fiber; 11 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 cholesterol; 3 grams sugar; 176 mg sodium.