Fresh, chopped Autumn salad with apple cider dressing has crunchy candied cinnamon pecans, apples, pears, bacon and feta cheese, all tossed in a sweet and tangy dressing.
This is how I’m getting myself geared up for the end of Summer. With the Fall salad of my dreams. It’s chock-full of apples, pears, BACON, feta cheese, dried cranberries, and a sweet and tangy apple cider dressing.
I’m seriously not ready for the seasons to change, but it’s happening, and I’ve got to get on board with it whether I like it or not. Along with the batch of mini pumpkin chocolate chip bread loaves my mother made last week, this salad is helping immensely.
And did I mention the candied nuts?? Use pecans or walnuts, whatever your preference is. My top pick would probably be pecans but when I made this batch you see in the pictures here, I had used up the last of a large bag of pecans and had a handful of walnuts hanging out in my pantry so I used them up and they were DE to the lish.
The apple cider dressing is one of my very favorite homemade salad dressings. It has a sweet and tangy flavor and comes together in about two minutes with just five ingredients. Feel free up to crank up the amount of black pepper you’re using. Freshly cracked black pepper is definitely my preference but use what you’ve got!
You’re going to love how quickly and easily this fresh Autumn harvest chopped salad comes together, and how well it pairs with all of your favorite Fall dishes. I’m just gonna say it now, this salad needs to grace your Thanksgiving dinner table.
I know! Can’t even think about Thanksgiving yet! But this salad is so Fall-y, so delicious, so perfect and tasty, it’s got me imagining how fast it will disappear at our family Turkey Day gathering.
What people are saying about this Autumn Salad with apple Cider Dressing
“I served this salad for Thanksgiving and everyone LOVED it! I can’t wait to make this again.” – Sarah
“I can’t say enough good things about this recipe! I’ve made it three times as is, and like to make it a main dish and serve it with a seasoned, baked chicken breast over the top. Thank you for the beautiful dish, I really love it!” – Ashley
Chopped Autumn Salad with Apple Cider Dressing
Ingredients
- 6-8 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 red apple - diced
- 1 anjou - or bartlett pear, diced
- 3-4 strips bacon - cooked til almost crisp, crumbled
- ½ red onion - chopped
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- ⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese
Nuts
- ⅔ cup pecans - or walnuts
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Dressing
- ⅓ cup apple juice
- ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- 1. Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar, cover, and shake well. Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine lettuce, apples, pears, bacon, onion, cranberries, and feta cheese.
- Add walnuts to a medium pan and stir over medium heat on the stove for 1-2 minutes until toasted. Add brown sugar and cinnamon and continue to stir until sugar is dissolved and walnuts are coated in the sugar mixture. Transfer to a glass plate or a metal serving pan to cool. Once cooled, roughly chop and add to the salad.
- Pour dressing over salad and toss to combine. Serve immediately.
Wonderful salad and the dressing is delicious!
Better then 5 Star restaurant salad! I get stuck in a rut on salads and was going to a dinner party and decided to try something new. This salad was amazing and got raves. I did put way more bacon then it called for. But I did have problems roasting the pecans with the sugar. The first set by the time the sugar melted (even on med/low) it ended up tasting burnt. Second time I kept it on low but it almost never really melted. Is there a trick? Can you add a little butter it just seemed so dry drying to melt the sugar. All I know this is now a staple in my house! YUM
How long will this recipe in fridge
Only a couple days. The dressing will make the lettuce soggy.
Can the apples and pears be added ahead? What about browning?
Yes you can add them ahead or cut them up right before, either way will be fine. To prevent browning you can pour lemon juice over them or soak them in salt water for a couple minutes.
Is there something that keeps the apples & pears from turning brown? Thank you!
You can either soak them in a bowl of salt water or lemon juice.