Description
A bright and fresh Apple Salad featuring crisp red apples, mixed salad leaves, tangy cranberries, and crunchy candied walnuts. This salad balances sweet, tart, and savory flavors with a simple cider vinegar dressing, making it perfect for gatherings or a light meal.
Ingredients
Salad
- 1 red apple, quartered, seeds removed, finely sliced
- Squeeze of lemon juice (to prevent browning)
- 120 g (4 oz) mixed salad leaves (4 to 5 big handfuls)
- 1/2 red onion, finely sliced (wedge style, not half-moon)
- 3/4 cup dried cranberries
- 2 tbsp feta or goat cheese, crumbled (optional garnish)
Candied Walnuts (or other nuts)
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 cup walnuts or pecans
Dressing
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1.5 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1.5 tsp white sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Candied Nuts: In a small non-stick skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add sugar and stir briefly until sugar mostly melts. When it starts bubbling, add nuts and stir continuously for 2 minutes. Pour the mixture onto a parchment-lined tray to cool. Once cooled, roughly chop half of the nuts, leaving some whole.
- Plump Cranberries: Place dried cranberries in a bowl and cover with freshly boiled water. Let soak for 10 minutes, then drain the water.
- Prepare Apple: Drizzle the sliced apple with lemon juice and toss gently to prevent browning.
- Make Dressing: Combine cider vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, white sugar, salt, and pepper in a jar. Shake well to emulsify. Adjust seasoning to taste by adding more oil for creaminess, sugar for sweetness, or vinegar for tartness.
- Assemble Salad: In a large bowl, combine half the apple slices, mixed salad leaves, and all the sliced onion. Drizzle with half the dressing and toss gently to coat.
- Scatter plumped cranberries, desired amount of candied walnuts, remaining apple slices, and crumbled feta (if using) over the salad. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve immediately for best freshness and flavor.
Notes
- Use red apples for a nice color and balanced sweet-tart flavor, avoiding overly sour Granny Smith or very sweet Golden apples.
- Feel free to substitute walnuts with pecans, almonds, sunflower seeds, or pepitas depending on preference; these provide great texture and flavor.
- This recipe makes more candied nuts than needed; leftovers store well in an airtight container for 1-2 weeks or can be frozen for months.
- Soaking cranberries plumps them and softens their texture, enhancing the salad’s overall mouthfeel.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Western
