Goat Cheese & Candied Walnut Pear Salad with Pomegranate Dressing

I know, this is a really long name for a salad, but all of the ingredients are so scrumptious, I just couldn't bear to leave any of them out of the name. All of these players deserve credit for this light and satiating salad. I used some left over goat cheese from the Cilantro Salad, and left over pears from the Pear Stuffed Chicken dinner. I can't say it enough, if you plan your dinners ahead before you go to the grocery store, you can really save time and money by making multiple meals using congruent ingredients. Case in point:

Goat Cheese & Candied Walnut Pear Salad with Pomegranate Dressing

1 bunch green or red leaf romaine lettuce (any spring mix, or even spinach would be good for this)

2 oz goat cheese, broken into small pea-sized pieces

1/2 cup walnuts (whole or pieces)

2 T light brown sugar
1 T butter, melted

1 Bosc pear, sliced

1/3 cup dried cranberries (any dried fruit would work here; currants, blueberries, apricots, etc)

Pomegranate Dressing (recipe follows)

Wash, drain and cut the head of lettuce. Set aside to dry (or use a salad spinner if you have one). 

Line either your toaster oven pan or a small baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Lay out the walnuts in a single, but closely arranged layer in the middle of the pan. Sprinkle evenly with the brown sugar and drizzle with melted butter. Broil for just about 5 minutes, until the sugar melts and "candies" the walnuts. Don't let it burn! Take the nuts out of the oven/toaster oven and let cool, about 5 minutes. Break apart the candied walnuts and set aside. 

To assemble the salad, simply place a handful of lettuce on each plate and top with goat cheese pieces, candied walnuts, sliced pears and dried cranberries. Drizzle with Pomegranate Dressing.

Pomegranate Dressing
1 T olive oil
1 T pomegranate molasses (or 2 T pomegranate juice)
1 T lemon juice
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 T honey


Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl until combined. Pomegranate molasses is a bit of an unusual ingredient, but I use enough in dinners that I always have some in my pantry. Some grocery stores sell it, but an Indian food store is your best bet. If it's easier, just use readily available pomegranate juice (the dressing will be slightly more runny with juice versus molasses).


By the way, it is a pet peeve of mine when I find a recipe for a fabulous sounding salad, only to discover that there is no recipe for the dressing and store-bought dressing is listed as an ingredient. Homemade dressings are typically quick and easy to whip up in the kitchen, so I always try to make fresh dressing to accompany my salads. Besides, I don't like having all of those crusty-topped, year old salad dressings in my refrigerator door.