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Home » Recipes » Salads

Butter Lettuce Salad with Citrus Honey Vinaigrette

Published: Mar 18, 2015 · Updated: Mar 21, 2025 · By Lisa Goldfinger · 17 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links

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Butter lettuce salad pin

This butter lettuce salad is simple but special. Delicate buttery bibb lettuce leaves dressed with a bright citrus honey vinaigrette.

glass bowl with butter lettuce salad, surrounded by limes, tarragon sprigs and lemons

Like most days, my son Paul came in the door from school yesterday and the first thing he said (after "hi mom") was "I'm starved!" I had just finished photographing this salad, and I offered him a taste. He reached right in and grabbed a leaf. "It tastes like spring." He said. What a great response! He gave me permission to quote him.Butter Lettuce Salad with Citrus Honey Vinaigrette in a glass bowl on a wooden table

Paul is right. This salad is like spring. The delicate butter lettuce leaves remind me of tender spring blooms. The bright flavors of lemon and lime, mixed with sweet honey are evocative of buzzing bees, budding flowers, fresh fruit, and the wonderful newness and warmth of the season.

It's been a long snowy winter here in Boston and I'm thrilled to be seeing signs of spring, even if only in my salad bowl!

a zested lemon and a zested lime and a zester next to a white bowl of lemon and lime zest

A whisk in a white bowl of citrus honey vinaigrette, surrounded by lemons and limes

WHAT IS BUTTER  LETTUCE?

  • Butter lettuce, also called Boston, Bibb and Living lettuce, has tender silky leaves with a delicate fresh flavor.
  • Usually sold with its roots still attached, butter lettuce lasts longer in the fridge than other lettuces because it's essentially still growing.
  • Butter lettuce, with it's tender leaves, is wonderful in spring and summer salads. 

Butter Lettuce on a white tray

WHAT MAKE THIS SALAD SO SPECIAL?

  • The lettuce is tender, sweet and buttery
  • The vinaigrette is bright and exciting with intense citrus flavors balanced by sweet honey.  
  • I love making this salad for company. Although it's very simple and just greens, it has that special something. I always gets compliments and requests for the recipe.

Butter Lettuce Salad with Citrus Honey Vinaigrette - Panning The Globe

I haven't said anything about the tarragon yet - it's great! This anise flavored herb is the perfect punctuation mark for the bright and sweet flavors of citrus and honey.

This recipe is adapted from Avec Eric

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  • Raw Kale Salad with Honey Lemon and Parmesan
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Here's the recipe for Butter Lettuce Salad with Citrus Honey Vinaigrette. If you try this recipe I hope you'll come back to leave a rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!

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Recipe

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Butter Lettuce Salad with Citrus Honey Vinaigrette - Panning The Globe

Butter Lettuce Salad with Citrus Honey Vinaigrette


5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 8 reviews

  • Author: Lisa
  • Total Time: 20 mins
  • Yield: 4-6 1x
Print Recipe

Description

A simple but special salad of soft buttery lettuce with a bright citrus honey dressing.


Ingredients

Scale
  • For the Dressing
  • 2 ½ tablespoon lemon juice plus the zest of one lemon (zest before juicing)
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice plus the zest of 1 lime (zest before juicing)
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • Sea salt (I recommend Maldon) or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 tablespoons canola oil
  • For the Salad
  • 3 heads butter lettuce (also called Bibb, Boston or living lettuce)
  • ½ cup fresh tarragon leaves, roughly chopped

Instructions

  1. Make the Dressing: Whisk lemon juice and zest, lime juice and zest, honey, and dijon in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in the oil, whisking constantly, to emulsify the dressing. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Set aside.
  2. Make the Salad: Cut the root end off the lettuces and gently wash and dry the leaves. I like to rinse leaves separately, under the tap, and spin them dry in my salad spinner. Tear the larger leaves into smaller pieces. Pile leaves into a large bowl. Sprinkle in the tarragon and toss it gently with the lettuce. Just before serving, toss the salad with just enough dressing to coat. Serve immediately.
  • Prep Time: 20 mins
  • Category: Salad
  • Method: no cook
  • Cuisine: Out of This World

Did you make this recipe?

If you make this recipe, please let me know how it turns out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on instagram with the hashtag #panningtheglobe

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Filed Under: All Recipes, Entertaining, Lunch and Brunch, Quick and Easy, Salads, Vegetarian Tagged With: dairy-free, gluten-free, salad dressing

Reader Interactions

Comments

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    Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

  1. Terrie

    February 14, 2025 at 6:20 pm

    This is our go-to salad - it's so delicious and fresh!! Even if we don't use butter lettuce (and sometimes add fresh peaches), the vinaigrette is our favorite on any salad!

    Reply
  2. Barb

    April 13, 2024 at 8:54 pm

    Delicious and oh so simple. Bonus that I had everything this recipe called for and didn't need to make a trip to the store.

    Reply
  3. Deb

    July 29, 2022 at 12:21 pm

    Simple and quick but beautiful delicious salad. Loved the dressing! Thank you for this recipe. Forgot how much I love butter lettuce and citrus. I happen to have passion fruit and did not have limes so I substituted and it was fab. Also added some crushed pistachios in fresh avocado. Will definitely keep this recipe handy!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      July 29, 2022 at 4:01 pm

      Hi Deb - I'm so glad you like the salad - I love your additions of avocado and pistachios. Delicious!

      Reply
  4. judy

    March 08, 2022 at 10:47 pm

    My family LOVES this. We are most often unable to find fresh tarragon but that is not the draw~ I have also added pistachios sometimes and they were a hit. All that said it is the DRESSING we love!
    Thank you!

    Reply
  5. Adam

    February 15, 2021 at 8:30 pm

    I loved it! The culinary simpletons in my house didn’t, so more for me!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      February 16, 2021 at 6:19 am

      Haha! I'm glad you enjoyed your own mountain of butter lettuce salad Adam. Thanks so much for coming back to let me know 🙂

      Reply
  6. Lauren

    May 29, 2020 at 1:26 pm

    I loosely followed the recipe for the dressing and man, it is SO good, I'm making this all the time! This was my first time having bibb lettuce as a salad and I ate the entire head to myself because this recipe. Added some onion and avocado and it was delicious

    Reply
    • Lisa

      May 29, 2020 at 2:42 pm

      Haha, I'm with you Lauren. I could eat the whole bowl of that salad myself too 🙂 I'm so glad you enjoyed and really I appreciate that you took the time to report back.

      Reply
  7. Nic

    December 27, 2019 at 9:45 am

    I have long been searching for the perfect side salad, and this fits the bill! So easy, yet somehow super delicious!!

    Reply
    • Actually don’t like cooking

      September 08, 2020 at 1:09 pm

      This is an amazing dressing, I followed it exactly for portions but used olive oil and it was perfect. I’ve tried it with a few different salads and my favorite is using this dressing over arugula and topping the salad with a citrus marinated grilled salmon. So delicious!

      Reply
  8. hester

    March 12, 2018 at 2:27 am

    this salad dressing is fantastic. your son is correct: it. tastes. like. spring.

    i've made this salad + dressing 2 wkends in a row. it was well-received by the family - even the sister who doesn't care, at all, for tarragon. go figure.

    as it happened, i didn't have fresh tarragon so for the salad i used your lettuce and some nice compari tomatoes - and put dried tarragon into the dressing, along with a bit of chervil. didn't have the oil you suggested, so i used olive oil. very simple. very fresh. it was wonderful. thAnks!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 12, 2018 at 5:21 pm

      Yay! Thank you for coming back to leave a comment Hester. I'm so glad to hear you're enjoying the salad. It's a great one for Spring. You're reminding me that I want to make it soon.

      Reply
      • hester

        March 13, 2018 at 3:12 am

        ah, lisa: you wouldn't happen to have a nice lettuce soup recipe, would you? i've seen a few that are with potatoes, some of them creamy soups, but i was looking for something light and fresh like the salad.

      • Lisa

        March 13, 2018 at 5:17 am

        Hi Hester, I wish I could help you with your request but I don't have a lettuce soup recipe. I will put it on my list of recipes to research. If you're looking for a light fresh soup that would pair well with the light citrusy salad You might enjoy this Moroccan Carrot Soup https://www.panningtheglobe.com/moroccan-carrot-soup-with-lemon-honey-yogurt/ or this Sweet Potato Soup with Shrimp https://www.panningtheglobe.com/coconut-sweet-potato-soup-with-spicy-shrimp/

      • hester

        March 13, 2018 at 4:06 pm

        thanks much for the zuppa recipe suggestions! the moroccan carrot soup sounds like a winner. will definitely try that.

  9. Rachel (Rachel's Kitchen NZ)

    March 18, 2015 at 2:35 pm

    Oh, yes, it does look like spring - sigh - it is autumn down here! So simply delicious - Lisa.

    Reply

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