I really love the dressing for this salad. You have a hint of sweetness from the maple syrup balanced out by the acidity from the white balsamic. There are so many textures in this salad your taste buds will be so happy. Crunch from the candied pecans, sweetness from the pears, chewy dried cranberries and creamy blue cheese. This is so good! This is an AWESOME, fabulous salad! The dressing is made with real maple syrup, and the salad is dressed with candied pecans, blue cheese, pear slices, and some dried cranberries. The ingredients might sound strange for a salad, but they work wonderfully together have It is SOOO good! I hope you like it as much as my family. Especially great in the fall and for the fall havewinter holidays.
Ingredients :
- DRESSING:
- 1/2 cup(s) olive oil
- 2 tablespoon(s) white balsamic vinegar (or white wine, or red wine vinegar)
- 3 tablespoon(s) real maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon(s) Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon(s) ground black pepper + pinch of salt
- SALAD:
- 5 cup(s) mixed salad greens (of your choice)
- 1 package(s) baby spinach
- 2 - red pears, cored and thinly sliced
- 1/2 - red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 cup(s) crumbled blue cheese or gorgonzola
- 1 cup(s) candied walnuts (*recipe below)
- 1/4 cup(s) dried cranberries
- 1 or 2 pinch(es) salt
- CANDIED PECANS (*OR USE WALNUTS)
- 1 tablespoon(s) butter (not oleo)
- 1 cup(s) pecan or walnut halves
- 1/4 cup(s) white sugar
- 1 pinch(es) optional: cayenne pepper or smoked paprika
Intructions :
- TO MAKE CANDIED NUTS: Melt butter in medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add nuts and sugar. Stir constantly until sugar melts and coats nuts. If desired, add pinch of cayenne or smoked paprika. Remove from heat and allow to cool
- Place salad greens and spinach, red onion slices, and pear slices into a salad serving bowl. Spread crumbled blue cheese all over, then candied nuts and dried cranberries
- Whisk together all the dressing ingredients until well blended. Pour 2/3 of the dressing over salad in the serving bowl. Toss well to coat salad evenlly. Taste, then if needed-- add some of remaining dressing.
Rated 5/5 based on 100 Reviews
Keyword : maple-balsamic-blue cheese-pear salad