Roasted Pear Salad Perfect Summer Recipe | Secret Recipe Club Reveal

It has been a busy few weeks since the last Secret Recipe Club Reveal! Our church had Vacation Bible School and then I went to a student beach camp with our church’s student ministry. It was the first time I’ve ever been away from the kids and The Chef!

I love them so much but I have to say it was nice to have time for myself and my relationship with God like that for a few days. The highlight of the week was witnessing 12 ocean baptisms before we left … I’m still excited about it!

Selecting a recipe was a challenge with my brain still on vacation!

When I got back home, I began looking at my assigned blog for this month’s Secret Recipe Club reveal, Cupcake Muffin, published by Sara. I really enjoyed looking through her recipes, but it was hard trying to decide on something when all I really wanted to do was go back to the beach. Nevertheless, the one I settled on I could not be happier about … and believe it or not, it is neither a cupcake or a muffin recipe! 😉

The perfect summer recipe

First of all, I love salads. It’s definitely one of my favorite things about summer. I’m not a fan of hot, humid weather. I don’t mind hot as much if the humidity stays away. And don’t even get me started on the pesky things known as mosquitoes.

Yes, summer is definitely my least favorite season, but somehow, having a great salad to eat can make it better, especially on days when you’ve been out in the heat and your appetite is zapped. You want something light … this salad is perfect!

So when I was browsing Sara’s blog and began looking at her salads, I knew I had found my recipe when I saw her Roasted Pear Salad. We are big pear fans in our home. We just shared an update from an allergy makeover that we’re seeing amazing results with, which is huge because the allergy/food sensitivity issues have made our family diet quite challenging these past few years:

But pears are one of the foods that we all can always eat, any time, as much as we want really. So I was excited to give this interesting sounding salad a try.

I must admit I was a slight bit hesitant because I’m not a huge fan of mixed greens. I usually prefer romaine hearts for my salad, but I’ve tried enough new recipes to know not to count something out for this silly reason without giving it an honest try.

My Adaptations

Sara suggested possibly adding goat cheese, and I decided to go with feta instead, another favorite of mine. I left out the watercress because I waited too long after buying my ingredients to make the salad and the watercress did not make it. Neither The Chef or I have ever had watercress before so I have no clue what it would have added. The original recipe called for one bunch. I also added some walnuts and reduced the salt a little bit.

When all was said and done, it turned out great! I really loved the roasted pears and the combination of all the other flavors. I honestly did not offer it to The Well Fed Daughter because she has not come around yet to trying new things much, but The Well Fed Son gobbled his up. He’s a salad eater like his mama. The Chef gave it a try. He’s not a big salad eater but he said it was tasty. He said he would recommend trying smoked gouda and some grilled chicken, which I will probably do next time!

If you’re a big salad fan, I think you will love this one. Give it a try and let us know how you like it.

Delicious Roasted Pear Salad Recipe ~ Adapted from Cupcake Muffin

Roasted Pear Salad

 

Author: Anne | The Chef's Wife

Recipe type: Salad

Cuisine: American

Print

This is a perfect summer recipe and I could not be more pleased with this July Secret Recipe Club Reveal! Delicious roasted pears add great texture and flavor to this salad. LOVE!

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons finely chopped shallot
• 2½ Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• ½ teaspoon honey
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• several dashes black pepper
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 large pears, firm but ripe
• 1 T olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 2 handfuls mixed baby greens, rinsed
• feta cheese, to taste
• walnuts, to taste

Instructions

1. Place the shallots, vinegar, honey, salt, pepper, and olive oil into a jar with a tightly fitting lid. Screw on the lid and then shake vigorously until all the ingredients are combined. Taste and add more honey, salt, and/or pepper as needed.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Peel the pears and slice each into 8-10 thick slices. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes until soft and caramelized. Flip the pears over with a spatula once during roasting. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before making the rest of the salad.
3. Place the baby greens in a salad bowl and add pears, feta cheese and walnuts. Add about half the dressing and toss to combine. Add more dressing as desired and pass any extra at the table.

Notes

If you are not eating all of this salad at the time you make it, then put the dressing in the refrigerator in a storage container and the salad greens in a separate storage container after rinsing and patting dry with paper towel or drying with salad spinner. Add pears, walnuts, feta cheese and dressing per serving of greens when ready to serve.

3.2.1311

Have you ever had roasted fruit on a salad before?

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About the Author

Adopted at age 2, grew up in the Charlotte, NC area. Obtained Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Appalachian State University. Loves being a Mom of two and taste-testing Chef John's culinary creations and sharing them with readers.

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