Here’s a nice autumn salad that features some of the fruits of the fall season along with our beloved kale. It’s pretty and festive and it could be a nice side to balance out a heavy meal, plus it requires very little work to bring it together!
You can put your own twist on it by changing up the type of fruit and nuts that you and your family like. For mine and for presentation, I added chopped apple and thinly sliced pear, I liked the contrast between the two cuts, I also added dried cherries, toasted walnuts and a sprinkling of pomegranate seeds.
The dressing really pulls this salad all together, it’s a mixture of apple cider vinegar and white balsamic blended together, which is a must. The oil you can change up to your liking, but I highly recommend roasted walnut oil for a little treat. Also, If you want to sweeten your dressing up a bit you can, but I never ended up doing it, it was perfect without.
Whatever nuts you use be sure to lightly toast them beforehand, it intensifies their flavor and also gives them more crunch.
It’s colorful, healthy, fresh and good for you, so dig in!
Speaking of colorful, every tree and bush I see is worthy of a snapshot. Chicagoland is exceptionally vibrant and beautiful this season!
- 1 bunch of curly kale
- 1 apple, chopped
- 1 pear, thinly sliced
- dried cherries or cranberries
- toasted walnuts
- pomegranate seeds, optional
- DRESSING INGREDIENTS
- ½ cup toasted walnut oil, (or oil of your choice)
- ¼ cup of vinegar total, using half apple cider vinegar and half white balsamic
- 1 teaspoon, Dijon mustard
- 1 small garlic clove grated on a microplane
- salt and pepper to taste
- Remove the stems from the kale, chop,wash and spin dry, place into a large bowl or platter. Curly kale holds on to water so spinning it dry is an important step.
- Chop 1 apple and slice 1 pear then squeeze a tiny bit of fresh lemon on top and set aside.
- Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing then pour onto the kale and toss until well coated,a little goes a long way, but feel free to make more if you have a huge amount of kale.
- Arrange the apples and pear on top and sprinkle with dried fruit and toasted nuts, any amount you desire.
- Serve immediately!
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
