“You can order something other than salad….you know that right?” These were the words spoken to me by my now husband after dating for about 3 weeks. Everywhere I went I was ordering salad. I wasn’t trying to be polite or watching my weight, I just happened to really like salad. Problem was as a single girl my ingredients in my fridge would always spoil before I could use them….so I usually only had salad when I went out to eat. He kept taking me out to eat. I kept eating salad. I still to this day don’t make it at home as much as I would eat it because(and this will be shocking) my husband doesn’t like salad. So if I do have salad, it is usually for lunch when Mr. No Palate is not around.
I’ve been very bad lately about participating in blogging events. Seems I always remember to do it the day(or week) after the fact. But the Salad Stravaganza(co-hosted by Lisa and Kelly) was publicized enough to the Daring Bakers that I had enough gently reminders to get mine in. This is a salad I like to make for company. The poached pear for some reason is very exciting to them(it’s not hard people). When I am feeling ambitious(not today) I usually make a blue cheese fritter to go along with it….but it was warm so the idea of standing in front of frying oil was not appealing. This salad has a lot of flavors occurring but they marry nicely together. And as usual, my salad is not low fat.
Have a salad recipe you want to share? You too can be part of the Salad Stravaganza. Just head on over to either La Mia Cucina or Sass and Veracity to get more information.

Poached Pear Salad with Blue Cheese, Spiced Caramel Walnuts and Blackberry Jam Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

Salad greens
poached pears(recipe follows)
blackberry jam vinaigrette(recipe follows)
spiced caramel walnuts(recipe follows)
blue cheese( however much you like)

Poached Pears

2 ripe Green Anjou pears, cut in half and cored
1 ½ cups Pinot Gris(I used A to Z from here in the PNW)
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup Port wine
2 whole cloves

Bring wines, sugar and cloves to a boil(making sure the sugar dissolves) and then bring to a simmer. Poach pears for 15 minutes. Remove ¾ cup of the liquid and reserve. Leave the pears in the liquid while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Blackberry Jam Vinaigrette

¾ cup poaching liquid from the pears
2 TBSP cider vinegar
¾ cup olive oil
1 tsp garlic
¼ cup blackberry jam

Cook reserved pear liquid(make sure no cloves are in there) until reduced by half. In a blender or Cuisinart mix reduction with blackberry jam, vinegar, garlic and some salt to taste. While blender is running, slowly add the oil.

Spiced Caramel Walnuts

1 cup walnuts
½ cup sugar
½ tsp chile powder
½ tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp sea salt

Combine sugar with the spices. Place into a saucepan and turn on medium heat. Watch carefully to see the sugar start to caramelize around the edges of the pan. When that happens throw in the walnuts and stir. When they are coated in caramel spread onto a pan that has been covered in parchment paper. Once it is completely cooled, break into pieces.

To put the salad together:
 Place a little bit of vinaigrette onto the bottom of the plate(this insures that the bottom greens get some of the good stuff too). Slice poached pear half in half. The slice each quarter and fan out placing it in the middle of the greens. Garnish with walnuts and blue cheese crumbles. Drizzle desired amount of vinaigrette.

Ah, Summer.
Heat. Bugs. Sweat rolling down my knees.
Beautiful bright red tomotoes…I’m allergic to raw ones. Beautiful bright blue blueberries…I’m allergic to raw ones. Endless peppers and onions….I’m allergic to raw ones. It does produce many other nice foods that I can indeed eat but….
Needless to say I am not a huge fan of Summer. I play an indoor sport(ice hockey), I watch an indoor sport(ice hockey), we don’t own a BBQ(because we live in an apartment) and there is no real pourch for us to linger on. The last time I went barefoot in the grass I was bitten by some giant ant. So Summer is a un-needed season for me. It used to be extrememly important when I was a teacher, but since that is not the case anymore, I would like to fast forward to the Fall please.
So when I saw the Summer Salad Recipe Event over at My Life as a Reluctant Housewife I started going through my cookbooks. All the truly pretty salads had vivid red tomatoes in them and this just made me sad. I kept being drawn to all the more “fall” salads. I love Fall. Everything about Fall is the best. Hockey season starts again and I can grasp on to the hope that the Flames will win the Stanley Cup. The weather is ideal for baking. I get to wear coats(I love coats). And I love all the Fall fruits and vegetables.
So this is my Summer salad. It is a Summer salad in the fact that it is a salad and I made it today and it is technically Summer. Therefore by definition it is a Summer salad.

Apple, Dried Cherry, and Walnut Salad with Maple Dressing

Maple Dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3 TBSP Champagne vinegar or other white wine vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Salad
1 5-ounce bag of mixed baby greens
2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into matchstick-sized strips
1/2 cup dried tart cherries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

For Dressing:
Whisk mayonnaise, maple syrup, vinegar and sugar in a medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil until mixture thickens slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

For Salad:
Toss greens, apples, cherries, and 1/4 cup walnuts in a large bowl to combine. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Divide salad equally among plates. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup walnuts and serve.

Makes 6 servings

Source: Bon Appetit, R.S.V.P., Septemer 2002, Mountain Town Station Brewing Company and Steakhouse