A fall-inspired Pear Walnut Salad featuring peppery arugula, sweet juicy pears, crunchy candied walnuts and a simple maple cinnamon dressing to bring it all together.
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This Pear Walnut Salad with Maple Cinnamon Dressing is just full of beautiful fall flavors and colors. We're talking a combination of peppery arugula, sweet juicy pears, crunchy candied walnuts and a simple maple cinnamon dressing.
The red skins of the pears look so pretty against the deep green arugula and the pear juices seep into the dressing once the salad is mixed adding even more flavor. It's just a dream to eat!
Serving Suggestions
Eat this Pear Walnut Salad as a side with your evening meal or with some soup for lunch. It can also be enjoyed on its own as a light lunch or dinner with some crusty bread, and it's perfect served up as a side or appetizer on your holiday table.
Try bulking it out by serving on a bed of green lentils tossed with some of the dressing and adding some crumbles of salty vegan feta cheese. or serve it with:
Recipe
Pear Walnut Salad with Maple Cinnamon Dressing
Author:Ingredients
For the candied walnuts
- ½ cup (62 grams) walnut halves , or pieces
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- small pinch fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the salad
- 8 big handfuls arugula , (rocket in the UK)
- 2 large red pears (use green if you can't find red- red apples make a good sub)
For the dressing
- ¼ cup (60 ml) maple syrup
- ¼ cup (60 ml) balsamic or apple cider vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- pinch fine sea salt
INSTRUCTIONS
For the candied walnuts
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175 °C)
- Mix walnuts with maple syrup, salt and cinnamon. Spread out on a lined baking tray and bake for 7 to 8 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
For the dressing
- Add all of the dressing ingredients to a small jar. Put the lid on and shake well.
For the salad
- Wash the pears gently and half them lengthways. Remove the cores with a teaspoon then cut each half into long thin slices.
- Add the arugula and sliced pear to a large salad bowl
- Sprinkle over the cooled walnuts.
- Drizzle generously with the dressing just before serving
NOTES
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Yahleigha says
All your recipes look so good, but they are definitely NOT keto! So sad for me!
Brenda says
Tried this at a friend's house yesterday sooooooo yummy had to search the internet to get the recipe. Will make it for Christmas this year.
Melanie McDonald says
That's great Brenda. I'm so pleased you enjoyed it!
Phyll says
This salad is not only fantastic in the fall, but we are enjoying it in March. Who knew cinnamon was so good for you and red pears are so tasty and pretty looking. I thought the candied walnuts were too sweet for me, so I toasted organic walnuts in a dry pan. We enjoyed the salad immensely. Thank you for this recipe!!
Megan says
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a perfect compliment to a heavy meal! I did add some scallions and we used spinach to make a little more little kid friendly.
A Virtual Vegan says
That's great Megan! So glad you enjoyed it. And I totally get what you mean about arugula not being kid friendly. My son is 17 and still won't eat it!
Sina says
This was so good!
Brandy says
I just love the walnuts and arugula combination in this. So flavorful and delicious!
Alisa says
I LOVED everything about this salad. Such complimentary flavors from the bitter walnuts, to the sweet maple, crispy pears and spicy arugula!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Alisa! I'm not usually a big lover of salads but I could eat this one every day!
Jackie says
Was not disappointed! Really delicious.
Amy says
I made double the candied walnuts so that I could snack on them while I was making the rest of the salad!