Apple Salad

Apple Salad has everything what is delicious: sweet and tart apples, candied pecans, crispy lettuce. All mixed in an apple salad dressing from 2 simple ingredients. This is such a great salad recipe with all the most amazing sweet and savory flavors that everyone will eat, even pickiest eaters. A keeper that can be a whole meal or side dish so good.

Here is why this Apple Salad will become a favorite in no time

It comes together so fast and tastes amazing the whole year.

This is a really simple salad, but it tastes like a gourmet version that you can easily prepare at home.

Sweet and savory flavors are the key: you have buttery, nutty, crispy, sweet and hearty flavors in each bite that really makes everything so wonderful.

So versatile: Apple Salad is great on it’s own or as side gig to my Easy Homemade Lasagna, Hashbrown Potatoes, or any other casserole. 

Wait only until  you see the apple salad dressing which is made with 2 ingredients and pairs so greatly with the other ingredients.

What you need for this Apple Salad recipe

Here are the ingredients for an unforgettable result, amazing.

Apples: of course these are a main ingredient. Any red apples like Braeburn Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Fuji, Gala have a great sweet and tart flavor which I find really great for this salad. But you can use others like Granny Smith, just know that the result will be more tangy and acid.

Olive oil and white vinegar with a splash of water make a great vinaigrette. So easy and full of flavor thanks to olive oil which adds heartiness, fruitiness and richness. I find the water is great, because it thins out the more prominent flavor from the other ingredients.

Candied pecans: these are seriously the most amazing. I use dairy free butter for a rich and buttery flavor. For sweetness I like to use brown sugar as it adds a caramel and sweet flavor that is robust, tasty and prominent. You can use white sugar, but can expect a less remarkable result. Still really enjoyable.

Lettuce: a crispy one works best. You can use whatever you want. Any green or mixed salad will work.

Cranberries: they add a extra touch of tartness and a great texture while munching.

Vegan feta: simply makes everything better: the saltiness and creaminess takes it over the top amazing.

How to make Apple Salad

Start mixing the dressing: combine olive oil, vinegar, water with a pinch of salt and pepper. Store it in the fridge until used and leftovers will be good for 3 weeks.

For the pecans: on the stove heat a skillet over medium heat. Add butter and pecans cook them for 1 minutes, then give brown sugar to it. Keep stirring until caramelized which will take 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool down. If you have any buttery liquid it will disappeared when cooling or you can simple drain it with a colander.

Alternatively you can make them in the oven: preheat oven to 390°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Your butter should be melted in a bowl or skillet. Combine with brown sugar and pecans. mix until fully coated. Transfer to your prepared baking sheet and bake them for 10 minutes.

Leftover pecans can be stored in the fridge for one week. So you can easily make a double batch, if you want to. It really tastes great as a snack as well.

Assembling the salad: add lettuce into a bowl, mix with cranberries, feta, apples, pecans and mix in the dressing until well combined. Serve and eat immediately in bowls or on plates.

Tips and tricks

This Apple Salad is definitely a dish that you should enjoy immediately, it is not made for leftovers. If you want to make this in advance you can do the following: make the dressing ahead of time as I mentioned it will be fresh in the fridge for around 3 months.

Pecans can be made in advance for around 1 week, but for the apples and the lettuce should only prepared just before serving.

I tell you why: apples when not used immediately will brown and get mushy. Lettuce won’t stay crisp. That will lead to a different and even not tasty result.

For the salad topper: instead of pecans you can use walnuts, almonds or cashews.

Other salads to try

• Popcorn Salad
• Dorito Taco Salad
• Brussels Sprouts Salad
• Broccoli Salad
• Big Mac Salad

Tag me on Instagram or Facebook with your remakes of this Apple Salad.

Enjoy, Florian.