Pear gorgonzola salad with maple candied pecans

This pear gorgonzola salad is so easy to make and has a great mix of flavors. Plus don't skip the maple candied pecans that add a delicious crunch and sweetness. Great as a side, a light appetizer, or enjoy a bigger serving for lunch.

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Pears are something that we all enjoy - both of my sons love them as snacks, as do I. While we can get them all year round, they do somehow seem to taste that bit better when in season more locally. So, I try to make the most of them then.

As well as snacking, we enjoy everything from my delicious pear cake to pear jam, as well as savory choices like this salad. It's quick and easy to make, particularly if you make the pecans ahead, and makes a great side or lunch.

Pear and gorgonzola cheese are a common pairing, and for good reason. The sweetness of the pear works so well with the tangy, slightly salty cheese. They don't need much more with them to make a delicious salad - here I've kept things simple with some greens, sweet and crunchy candied pecans and a tasty vinaigrette.

Choosing and preparing pear for salads

You can use a few varieties of pear for salads and some is down to your taste. If you prefer firmer, crisper chunks, then Bosc is a good choice. If you prefer sweeter and juicy, then Bartlett would be great. Anjou also works well and is somewhere between the other two.

Choose pears that are ripe but slightly on the firmer side so that they don't become mushy. To prepare the pear, cut it into quarters, remove the core then cut in slices. If it's former, you could make the slices long but for juicier pears I think short slices is better. Fan the slices out slightly, or scatter on top of the base greens.

Making and storing maple candied pecans

Much as they feel that bit indulgent, my version of candied pecans is actually relatively healthy, as candied things go. They are made with maple syrup rather than sugar, and only a small amount, too.

The candied pecans are really quick to make as all you do is:

• Dry-toast the pecans in a skillet until gently nutty smelling.
• Drizzle the maple syrup over them and quickly toss so they are coated.
• Tip them on some parchment paper and let them cool.

Make sure you use a plastic spatula to stir as the syrup does get hot. For the same reason, I recommend you don't handle the pecans directly until they are cool. Using a plastic spatula means once any excess syrup has cooled, it just slides off really easily (and tastes delicious!)

You can keep the nuts in a sealed box at room temperature for a few weeks and use them on a whole range of things, such as with other salads or on top of my banana oatmeal. They're addictively good, so you might want to make extra!

Putting together the pear gorgonzola salad

The rest is as simple as chopping the pear, whisking the oil, vinegar and maple syrup for the dressing and layering it all up.

The dressing here is the same maple vinaigrette that I use in my beet apple salad and is both really easy and the perfect pairing for autumnal fruit. It's has a nice sweet-tart balance, though if you prefer it sweeter, give it a taste and you can always add a little extra maple syrup.

Substitutions and adaptations

If you want to bulk this salad out to be more of a meal, adding some chicken would work well. You could also add some roasted beets (as I do sometimes) or other roasted roots like squash or parsnips.

For some extra pops of color and flavor, you could add dried cranberries or cherries, or some pomegranate arils. If you don't have gorgonzola you could use other types of blue cheese, or goat cheese for anyone less keen on blue cheeses.

I love the pepperiness of arugula as a base, but other greens such as spinach or baby kale would also work. While I find the maple balsamic dressing works really well, you could also use a simple French vinaigrette or one with lemon and honey, for example.

This pear gorgonzola salad is so easy to make and has a delicious sweet-savory balance. It makes a great side salad to a broad range of dishes, or make a big old bowl for lunch. So quick, so tasty, it makes a fantastic but easy change from your average salad.

Try these other autumnal salads:

• Vegan lentil salad with roasted Brussels sprouts
• Butternut squash wild rice salad
• Apple celeriac salad
• Roasted kabocha squash salad with feta
• Plus get more fall recipes in the archives.

See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store. 

This post was first shared in September 2016 and has been updated, primarily with new photos and video.

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