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Arugula is one of those greens that you either love or hate. If you’re a hater, that’s okay. You can either stop reading now, or be clever and substitute another green, like spinach, for the arugula. This salad will still be fantastic.
There are just so many great flavors going on in this salad. The sweet pear offsets the bitterness of the greens perfectly and the parmesan cheese, walnuts, and balsamic dressing all compliment each other well.
Try it. You’ll be happy you did.
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Arugula salad with grilled pear & balsamic vinaigrette
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 large salads 1x
Description
A fresh and tasty salad full of flavor
Ingredients
for the salad
- 6 cups baby arugula
- ~1/4 cup toasted walnuts
- 1 medium pear, sliced (you want a ripe, but firm pear)
- extra virgin olive oil
- ~2 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese (shaved would work nicely, too)
for the dressing
- 1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
Salad Preparation:
- To toast the walnuts, heat in a small pan over medium heat until they are fragrant and start to brown.
Tim doesn’t like walnuts, so he got almonds instead.- To grill the pears, first brush each slice with a small amount of olive oil on both sides. Then, place them on the grill over medium heat (350-450 degrees). Grill for just one minute per side. Be careful, as the pear slices will get mushy fast if you overcook them.
We also had some grilled chicken breasts for dinner. We added the pears at the very end of their cooking time.- Remove the pears from the grill and cut into strips to add to the salad.
Dressing Preparation:
In a small bowl, add all dressing ingredients and whisk until oil and vinegar are emulsified. You can also use a hand blender to help you with this if you prefer.
To Assemble the Salad:
On each plate, place some arugula leaves, walnuts, parmesan cheese, and pear strips. Drizzle with the vinaigrette.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 391
- Sugar: 23g
- Sodium: 114mg
- Fat: 28.5g
- Carbohydrates: 32g
- Protein: 7g
I’m in love with salads that have fruit and nuts in them. You just can’t go wrong. Grill one of the fruits, and wow, you have a seriously delicious salad.
Now if only I could get this little girl to give salad a try.
She has no interest in salads and won’t even entertain the idea of taking a bite, yet we have salads most nights with our dinner. I’d love for her to enjoy them with us. Of course, I know arugula might not be the best green for a toddler because of its strong flavor, but she won’t even try regular lettuce.
To all you parents out there who have been there, done that: at what age did your child(ren) start enjoying salads? Any tips to get the little one to try one?
It looks so yummy, I will try cooking it
I made the dressing last night for an arugula, grape tomato, roasted beet and feta salad. It was delicious. The maple syrup took it from ho-hum to really good.
My kids will eat salad, but they prefer romaine lettuce because they like the crunch rather than the soft leaves of other lettuces.
Good to know. I’ll have to start pushing romaine on Meghan. 🙂
That salad looks soooooo yummy! I am about 18.5 weeks pregnant, and salads taste SO good right now, especially on these hot days. I’ll definitely have to try grilling up some pears! Our oldest 2 (ages 3.5 and 2.5) eat salad when we serve it, but the 18 month has yet to master it. I think the texture thing is a big issue for them, too. I feel like a mean mom, but for us, trying their salad was an obedience issue. Ever since they’ve been very small we’ve always had them at least try a bite of everything. They don’t LOVE everything, but they are very good eaters and will eat what we ask them. The girls now know they have to eat their salad (which is probably only 2-3 bites in reality) before they will be excused or allowed to have anything special. It’s not for everyone, but that is what has worked for us so far. I love reading all your recipes for new and healthy ideas!
We are due right around the same time! How fun. 🙂 I agree that salads are tasting so good right now. I’ve been craving them all summer. I’m glad that they are my big craving rather than ice cream (although I do crave sweets sometimes, too).
I’m working on the concept of trying a bite of everything with Meghan. I’m torn between wanting to make sure she is obeying and not making mealtime a battle. I want her to associate food and eating with a positive rather than negative experience. It’s a tough balance. I’m learning as I go. 🙂 Thanks for your insight.
That salad looks delish! Noah ate salads at a very young age. Kind of the same situation, I ate one most nights for dinner – he wanted what I was eating. Kohl on the other hand wouldn’t eat salads until about a year ago around age 4! Just keep offering she will evetually try it 🙂
That’s what I’m hoping!
YUM! I love arugula. My daughter, who is about to turn seven eats salads regularly, but didn’t when she was younger. It wasn’t until she truned three or so that she really became willing to eat them. I think that the “toughness” of greens can be difficult for younger children to manage. I found that Amelia (my daughter) tended to prefer salads with softer greens in them when she was younger. Maybe try a softer spring mix or butter lettuce. My son, who just turned two, expresses interest in my salad, but spits it out after a few seconds of chewing the greens. I think he has a hard time with them.
That’s the same thing Meghan did the few times she has tried the greens. Chewed for a moment and then spit it out. This was a while ago so she could probably handle it better now, but she must still have that memory in her brain. I’m hoping she’ll grow to like salads someday.
Salad look really yummy. Like you, we try to serve salad almost every night, just keep offering it and eventually she will come to like it. All our kids (ages 8, 4, and 2) eat salad now but it started out as only romaine with ceasar dressing (all natural Cardini’s) and fresh grated parmesean. That is still their favorite. I just kept adding one extra thing at a time every so often and always kept the same dressing, then added sunflower seeds, almonds, shredded carrots, etc. She will come around to like it, our pickiest did around the age of 5 and hasnt stopped eating it since. 🙂
We also have them put their own toppings on their salad, they seem to like picking the variety of choices and making their own salads. Our 2 year old has more topping than salad but it’s the process of him eating and making a salad that will hopefully develop into a good habit.
Have a good day 🙂
The greens are the hardest for me to get her to try, with or without dressing. She’ll eat some of the stuff we put on the salad, just in a deconstructed state.
Lots of cheese and Ranch dressing. {just kidding ;)}
The kids never really started liking salads until we started frequenting Jason’s Deli and they could pick their choices (or any salad bar). During the summer/fall when we have a harvest of our own we show them how similar our own choices are. The type of dressing usually makes a difference although Isabel prefers all her salads plain. When they were little I would just break down all the ingredients and put them in separate food piles.
Yes, that’s what I do now. She gets most of our toppings in separate piles. She just won’t touch the greens though. Someday I hope.
omg that looks soooo good!
the sweetness of pears with the peppery-ness of arugula…omg i want it!!!
and your lil girl is sooo beautiful! 🙂
Thanks, Averie. Your little one is pretty gorgeous, too. 🙂
My nephew eats spinach purely because his aunt just goes crazy nuts when he eats it, okay so it’s only a bite. But, it is a start…. I took care of two little boys for about 4 years and I put lettuce on their tacos and things like that and they would eat it there; as far as eating a salad. It didn’t happen.
Maybe put some strawberries in it and glaze it with honey. That is pretty darn good and maybe the sweetness will get her hooked on the texture side of things… GOOD LUCK! Keep us posted so I am armed with the tools if the day ever comes…
My sis-in-law makes a version of this salad with spinach, but now you’ve got me thinking– I adore arugula. I’m very attracted to bitter greens. It’s strange. I get deep hunger pangs for them even. Yumm!
I used to make a caramelized pear salad every Thanksgiving. Best. Salad. Ever. Thanks for the reminder! Who says I can only have it for Thanksgiving?