Apple Pecan and Bacon Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette Dressing

Indulge in the festive Apple Pecan and Bacon Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette dressing. This salad is perfect for the holidays, with a delicious blend of sweet and savory flavors.

With holiday parties and gatherings in full swing, there's no better way to impress your friends and family than with this go-to holiday salad.

Crisp apples, candied maple pecans, crunchy bacon, and creamy blue cheese are combined with a caramelized shallot and garlic vinaigrette to create a mouthwatering dish.

EASY SALAD PREPARATION DURING THE BUSY HOLIDAY SEASON

What I truly love about this salad are the different salad components that can be prepped AHEAD of time! Let’s break it down:

Keep apples fresh and crisp

• To prevent apple slices from browning quickly, soak them in a mixture of water and lemon juice. This easy trick will help keep your apples looking and tasting fresh for longer.

Preparing Candied Maple Pecans

• For best results, make your candied maple pecans the day before you plan to use them. Once you've finished cooking them in a skillet, let them cool to room temperature before transferring them to the fridge to chill until needed.

Caramelized Shallot and Garlic Vinaigrette

• Begin by caramelizing a mixture of shallots and garlic in the skillet you just used to make the candied maple pecans. Then, add the mixture to a food processor with the remaining dressing ingredients. Store the dressing in an airtight container until you're ready to use it.

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo to #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with!

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Indulge in the festive Apple Pecan and Bacon Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette dressing. This salad is perfect for the holidays, with a delicious blend of sweet and savory flavors.

Servings: 4-6 Prep: 10 MIN Cook time: 20 MIN

Ingredients

• 1 - 12 oz package of uncured, no sugar bacon

• 1 - container mixed greens

• 2 large handfuls arugula

• 6 oz blue cheese

• 1 large gala apple

to make the candied maple pecans

• 1 cup raw pecans

• 1 Tbsp grass-fed butter, ghee, or coconut oil

• ⅓ cup pure maple syrup

• ½ tsp cinnamon

• ¼ tsp smoked paprika

• ¼ tsp sea salt

to make the shallot vinaigrette

• 3 cloves of garlic, mashed

• 2 large shallots, thinly sliced

• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard

• ¼ cup avocado oil

• S+P to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and lay bacon out onto a tin foil lined sheet pan or wire rack baking pan. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until bacon is crispy. Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside.

2. While the bacon is cooking, make the candied maple pecans by heating a skillet with 1 Tbsp of butter over medium heat.

3. Place pecans and syrup in the skillet, stirring constantly for about 3-5 minutes. While the syrup thickens and is coating the pecans, sprinkle seasonings over the pecans.

4. Spread the mixture out onto a parchment paper and allow to cool completely (the syrup will continue to harden as they cool). Set aside.

5. To make the dressing, add sliced shallots and mashed garlic to the same pan with 1 tbsp oil. Sauté for a few minutes until the shallots are caramelized and softened. Stir in the maple syrup, apple cider vinegar and a dash of salt and pepper and let simmer for 30 seconds or so. Transfer mixture to a food processor and add dijon mustard, oil and seasonings and pulse until mixture is smooth and creamy.

6. To a large salad bowl, add the mixed greens and arugula along with apple slices, candied maple pecans, bacon (roughly chopped), blue cheese crumbles and pour in the vinaigrette and toss to combine.

7. Taste the salad and season with more salt and freshly cracked black pepper if needed. Serve immediately.

Notes

• Making this salad for the holiday season and pushed for time? Find my go-to busy tips above with the header: EASY SALAD PREPARATION DURING THE BUSY HOLIDAY SEASON

Strawberry Fields Salad

This spring salad was featured in Bliss Women Magazine. Their mission is to make women's health and well-being a priority. Check out their website to learn more!

Spring is finally here!

The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and the sunshine lasts longer. I always look forward to the weather becoming warmer and our frozen world coming back to life.  The spring is a gentle reminder that seasons do not last forever and that eventually, flowers will begin to bloom again. How can this reawakening of a flower relate to our story as women? Are you currently stuck in a career that does not allow for growth? Do you want to get your health back on track but don’t know where to start?  Just like a flower emerging from its winter slumber, so can we as women come into a new season of life. It might take some hard work and sacrifice, but with time you will begin to see the fruition of your efforts and fulfillment of your goals.

Not only do flowers bloom but so does spring produce! In-season produce reaps the most nutritional value so look for these fruits and veggies at your local farmer’s market or produce aisle:

Strawberries

Asparagus

Radishes

Peas

Rhubarb

Arugula

Beets

Fava beans

Artichokes

Avocados

Citrus Fruits

Fresh herbs

What better way to incorporate these ingredients than to make a spring salad! Salads are a super-convenient way to get in a couple of servings of vegetables and/or fruit into your diet. Salads can also be fun, colorful and full of great texture.

For this healthy recipe, I have created a vegetarian style salad with most of these spring ingredients that contain healthy fats, protein and complex carbohydrates that will keep you satisfied.

This winning strawberry fields salad is complex in flavor, yet super simple to make. It provides just the right amount of sweetness from the strawberries and honey balsamic vinaigrette, nuttiness from the pecans, creaminess from the avocado and goat cheese, tartness from the green apples, and spiciness from the arugula and radishes.  The honey balsamic vinaigrette pairs beautifully with the contrasting flavors and textures of the salad.

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo with #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with!

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This strawberry fields salad will become your new go-to salad for the spring! Made with fresh spring produce and a bright honey balsamic vinaigrette. A vegetarian and gluten-free option! 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pecan halves

• 1 Tbsp coconut sugar

• 1 tsp coconut oil

• 1 cup strawberries (sliced)

• 1 large handful fresh mixed greens

• 1 small handful fresh arugula

• 2 Tbsp goat cheese (crumbled)

• 1 Tbsp fresh mint leaves

• 1/2 cup carrots (shredded)

• 1/2 granny smith apple (sliced)

• 1/4 cup radishes (sliced)

• 1/2 cup fresh snow peas

• 1/2 avocado (sliced

Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette

• 1/2 lemon with zest

• 2 Tbsp balsamic vineger

• 1 Tbsp EVOO

• 1 Tbsp honey

• 1/4 tsp dijon mustard

• salt and pepper to season

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

2. Mix coconut oil and sugar together and add pecans. Toss until thoroughly coated. Place pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. Cook for 5-10 minutes on one side and then flip them and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes.

4. While the pecans are roasting, whisk together the vinaigrette ingredients until corporated. Give it a test taste. If you like it sweeter, add a touch more honey. If you like more vinegar, add a touch more balsamic.

5. Toss dressing with the salad and top with avocado and coconut sugar roasted pecans.