Monday, March 14, 2011

Green Salad with Pears, Feta and Cinnamon Walnuts


I believe Spring might actually be coming. Yea.  I am so excited.  To celebrate, I think a salad would be perfect. This salad came from a wonderful site called Jamie Cooks It Up. She has some really great home cooked recipes.    Check out her blog.  You may wonder how you ever did without it.  Here is the link to the recipe.  The recipe and photo below are from Jamie Cooks It Up.

Green Salad with Pears, Feta and Cinnamon Walnuts
Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 15 servings
Recipe from Jamie Cooks It Up!
Cinnamon Walnuts:
1 C walnuts, chopped
1/4 C sugar
1/8 t cinnamon
dash salt
Salad:
2 heads green leafy lettuce
1/2 red onion
1 C feta cheese
4 Bartlett pears
Dressing:
1/3 C + 2 T apple cider vinegar (don't laugh at my math skills please.)
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C mayonnaise (I used light)
1/4 C red onion, roughly chopped
1/2 C + 2 T canola oil (again, I am not a mathematician....)
1/4 t dry mustard
1/2 t salt
Juice from 1 lemon
1. In a large hot skillet add your chopped walnuts, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Cook them over medium heat, stirring frequently until the sugar dissolves and begins to make a candy coating along the nuts. Be careful not to let them burn. Pour them out onto a cookie sheet to cool.

2. Put all of your dressing ingredients, but the oil into a blender. Turn the old girl on, and slowly add your oil. Let it blend for about 1 minute after the oil has been added.
3. Chop up your lettuce, red onion, crumble up your feta and add all three to a large bowl.
4. Just before serving slice and chop your pears. Add them to the salad and sprinkle with the Cinnamon Walnuts. Add the dressing a little at a time, and stir the salad to incorporate.You may have a bit of the dressing left over, depending on how large your heads of lettuce are. Don't drowned the salad....you just need enough so that all parts of the salad are lightly coated.
***NOTE: The pears, cinnamon walnuts and dressing should be added just before serving. Brown pears, soggy nuts and wilted lettuce will be your fate if they are added before hand.***

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