A good salad is really about great ingredients and making sure the flavors of those ingredients work together.
This salad follows that principle and it couldn’t be easier to make. The only cooking you’ll do is toasting the pecans in butter, brown sugar and delicious warm spices (we recommend making a double batch because they also double as a tasty snack). Otherwise, the rest is assembly: layering peppery arugula, dried cherries and creamy goat cheese. The dressing is what marries this salad together, which has a little tang from the balsamic vinegar and a touch of sweetness from the maple syrup. It’s a great salad for nearly any protein you’re serving, but we love it with our Grilled Lemony Shrimp Skewers.
RECIPE:
Baby Arugula Salad with Spiced Pecans, Dried Cherries and Balsamic-Maple Dressing
INGREDIENTS
4 cups baby arugula
1 cup Spiced Pecans (recipe below)
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup goat cheese, crumbled
Cracked black pepper, to taste
Balsamic-Maple Dressing, to taste (recipe below)
BALSAMIC-MAPLE DRESSING
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper, to taste
SPICED PECANS
1 cup whole pecans
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- Add arugula, black pepper and dried cherries in a large salad bowl. Toss gently with vinaigrette to your liking, top with goat cheese crumbles and spiced pecans. Serve immediately.
For Dressing:
- Add maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper to a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until well combined.
For Spiced Pecans:
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add pecans, sugar and spices. Toast for 3-5 minutes and transfer to a parchment paper-lined sheet pan to cool.
