Monday, November 23, 2020

MONDAY RECIPE POST - PEAR GORGONZOLA SALAD


This was an excellent salad and I found it here at A Food Lover's Kitchen, hosted by Laura.  My photo shows it without the vinaigrette dressing.  If you look at Laura's recipe at the first link above, you will see photos and where she goes into great length explaining every step.  This is a fast salad to prepare and I had it on the table in no time at all.


Pear and Gorgonzola Salad

Makes 2 large salads or 4 side salads

 

For the salad dressing:

3 tablespoons olive oil

1-1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1/2 teaspoon honey or agave

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Squeeze of lemon juice

 

For the salad:

 2 cups wild lettuce mix or arugula

1 small pear diced

3 tablespoons crumbled gorgonzola or blue cheese

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts, lightly toasted

2 tablespoons dried cranberries, roughly chopped

 

Instructions

Toast the walnuts in a pan with a small amount of oil over medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning.

 To make the salad dressing, add the olive oil, vinegar, honey, dijon mustard, and oregano to a small mixing bowl. Whisk ingredients together until well combined. Add a squeeze of lemon juice, if desired and salt and pepper to taste.

Add the lettuce, pear, cheese, walnuts and cranberries to a large salad bowl.

Top the salad with half the salad dressing. Mix gently to coat the lettuce. If the salad requires more dressing, add a little extra at a time until the desired amount suits your taste.

Serve immediately.


We both enjoyed this salad very much. 
 
I bought a baby lettuce mix. 

You can add extra nuts and dried cranberries if you want to.

We added diced avocado and diced sweet red pepper to the mix.  For our tastes it was a very nice addition. 

We added a tad more of the walnuts and dried cranberries.

After making this vinaigrette I won't be buying store bought too often from now on.  It was very easy to make and tasted great.  I didn't toss the salad with the vinaigrette, but served it on the side to spoon on top.  I am not a big fan of too much dressing, probably because I didn't grow up with it, except for salad cream which Mum always used sparingly.  I wasn't a big fan of that either but it was probably a kid thing. This is what salad cream looks like.  I understand you can buy it from World Market if you have one in your area, or maybe the British section of your supermarket.  Failing that, online.

Here is the address to the recipe just in case the link doesn't work.

https://afoodloverskitchen.com/pear-gorgonzola-salad/


Thanks for looking and Bon Appétit!


29 comments:

  1. A good one for our summer which has arrived. I have found as I get older I find i difficult to swallow small lettuce leaves they tend to get stuck in my throat. This makes me mad because I love salad. However, I can manage Cos lettuce.

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    1. Thanks Diane :) I am having the same problem with certain foods but not with this kind of baby lettuce. Now popcorn!

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  2. I have trouble with pears but the rest of it sounds delicious. And yes, home made salad dressing (like so many home made things) tastes much, much better.

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    1. Thanks EC :) I only recently rediscovered how much I enjoy pears. I agree on the home made dressings.

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  3. I seldom see Gorgonzola cheese here, it is an Italian cheese and the French are pretty good at selling their own products. This sounds great though. Stay safe Diane

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    1. Thanks Diane :) I love French cheeses. We are fortunate to get a lot of imported cheeses in our area. You stay safe also.

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  4. Hello, Denise,

    This salad sounds delicious, the dressing is easy to make. Thanks for sharing the recipe and link. Take care, enjoy your day! Have a great new week!

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    1. Hello Eileen, glad you like the look of this. I wish you the same :)

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  5. This looks really good but I know I would not love it I would eat it if you serve it to me but I would not love it I am not a salad lover. I wish I were

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    1. My family growing up did not eat salads, and the first time I had a proper one was when we visited my sister after she got married. My dad never liked salads and always called it rabbit food. We gave 'salad' to all our rabbits :) I then started fixing salads for Gregg as he was used to them, and I gradually began to enjoy them too.

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  6. never heard of salad cream; we always had oil and vinegar, your salad sounds delicious, reminds me I want to try making baked pears.

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    1. Hi Linda, salad cream is a very British thing, and I'm wondering if Australia has it too. Maybe some of our Australian friends can tell us :) Baked pears are wonderful!

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  7. Replies
    1. Thank you Christine, one we enjoyed very much :)

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  8. Myślę, że spodoba ci się to. Daj mi znać, jeśli to zrobisz :) Mam nadzieję, że będziesz zadowolony.

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  9. Looks and sounds lovely, thanks for sharing the recipe.

    All the best Jan

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    1. You are very welcome Jan, and all the best to you too :)

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  10. This salad looks wonderful, Denise. I have a great fondness for pears so I know I'd love it. I've never heard of salad cream. Sounds interesting.

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    1. Happy you think so Martha Ellen :) I am looking forward to buying more pears. The salad cream is too sweet for my dear hubby.

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  11. Sound as if it would be tasty.
    I usually make my own dressing, buy a few for a change sometimes.

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  12. Replies
    1. I haven't had it in a very long time. It is a very strong cheese, that I do remember. I buy blue cheese every once in a while.

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