Enjoy a delicious Apple Walnut Salad for a flavorful lunch or side salad. You're in for a mouthwatering salad that is full of flavor.
Loaded with mesclun greens, spinach, crispy apples, and Gouda cheese. A fall-inspired Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette tops it off for one amazing bed of greens.
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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- Today's apple walnut salad is delicious, versatile, and takes about 10 minutes to make!
- This salad is perfect for lunch or a side salad at dinner.
- It is a super versatile salad that as written is Vegan and Gluten-free but can be so flexible with add-in's to meet your families dietary needs.
Ingredients
- apples: these apples are sweet and juicy. A great apple used raw and perfect for apple salads.
- walnuts - add a nice crunch to the salad.
- dried blueberries: a little sweet and another crunch to add to the flavors.
- carrots - add color and a touch of sweetness to the salad.
- smoked gouda: the smokiness in the cheese is perfect with the juicy apples.
- shallot: adds a subtle flavor to the salad that will blend well with the maple vinaigrette.
- dijon mustard: adds a tangy flavor to balance the maple and balsamic vinegar.
- balsamic vinegar - a good acid for the vinaigrette to balance with the pure maple syrup.
- pure maple syrup - be sure to use pure maple syrup which will balance the acidity in the balsamic vinegar.
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Equipment
Instructions
This is an overview of the recipe. The full instructions are below in the recipe card.
Step 1: Place washed greens into the salad bowl.
Step 2: Add shallots, dried blueberries, walnuts. shredded carrots, smoked Gouda, and sliced apples to the bowl.
Step 3: Drizzle with the maple vinaigrette and enjoy!
Salad Dressing Instructions
Step 1: In a small bowl, whisk together minced garlic, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, pure maple syrup, salt, and black pepper.
Step 2: Whisk in the avocado oil or your preferred oil.
Step 3: Taste for seasoning, if needed, re-season.
Step 4: Drizzle on the Apple Walnut Salad.
Storage
As with most salads, once the ingredients are all mixed together this salad is best eaten right away.
If preparing ahead of time, the greens can be washed and stored in an airtight covered container in the refrigerator.
The carrots can be shredded and stored in the fridge.
The vinaigrette can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept in a covered airtight container.
Expert Tips
Expert Tip: To prevent the apples from browning, slice the apples and squeeze some lemon on them.
- Be sure to use 100% pure maple syrup not pancake syrup.
Frequently Asked Questions
This is a very easy salad to prepare. Prepare the lettuce the day you want to eat it. Put the apples and cheese on the salad right before serving.
We enjoy Rave, Honeycrisp, Fuji, Gala, and Cortland all for salads.
Variations
The beauty of this salad is to be able to swap out ingredients.
salad greens: Besides the greens in the recipe, any of these would be awesome: kale, arugula, Boston, romaine, green leaf, and red leaf lettuce are just a few options.
dried fruit: Your favorite dried fruit would well such as dried cranberries or cherries.
cheese: Crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese, or blue cheese which are both creamy would be great in this salad. Omit if vegan or dairy-free.
protein: To make this a dinner salad:
- Vegan additions:
- Air fryer crispy tofu would be delicious over these greens.
- Crispy oven-roasted potatoes would be delicious with the salad and dressing.
- Grilled Cauliflower Steaks would be a delicious pairing with this fall salad.
- meat protein addition:
- Add grilled chicken or poached shrimp to make this an easy dinner salad.
Serving Suggestions
A fantastic salad to serve with Air Fryer Pork Chops for a quick and easy meal.
These cispy air fryer pork chops would be another fantastic pairing.
If you love a soup and salad, try our Broccoli Beer Cheese Soup or this yummy Slow Cooker Corn Potato Chowder with a nice bowl of these greens.
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Eileen xo
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Apple Walnut Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large salad bowl, add in mesclun greens, spinach, sliced apples, shallot, shredded carrot, chopped walnuts, dried blueberries.
- Drizzle the Maple Vinaigrette on the salad. Mix to combine.
- Ready to serve.
- In a small bowl, whisk to combine minced garlic, balsamic vinegar, pure maple syrup, dijon mustard.
- Whisk in the oil to combine all ingredients.
- Taste the vinaigrette. Reseason if needed.
