For Candied Pecans:
2 cups whole pecans
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
For Creamy Apple Poppy Seed Dressing:
1/3 cup sour cream
3 Tbsp. mayonnaise
3 Tbsp. frozen apple juice concentrate
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
salt and pepper to taste
For Salad:
1 bag of baby spinach, washed and dried
1/2 lb. bacon, cooked until crispy and crumbled into small pieced
1 tart green apple, such as Granny Smith, cored and thinly sliced
1 handful of dried cranberries (or you could use cherries or currants)
Green onions, or thin slices red onion
Instructions:
For Candied Pecans:
Over medium-high heat and in a large skillet (10″ to 12″) melt the butter. Add nuts and sugar. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the sugar starts to melt. Lower the heat and cook until the sugar turns a golden brown and no lumps of undissolved sugar remains. Add the vanilla–it will sputter and bubble furiously. Stir quickly to combine. Pour out the nuts and syrup onto a well-greased or parchment covered cookie sheet. (I use my Silpat.) Let cool completely.
Use a serrated bread knife to chop the nuts into medium-sized chunks.
For dressing:
Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl. It will be thick at first and then thin out. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve the salad. Keeps a few days in the fridge.
For salad:
Toss spinach, bacon, apple, dried berries, candied pecans, and onion (if using) together in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over salad while tossing with tongs to completely coat the leaves. (You may not need all of the dressing.) Serve immediately.
4 Comments
i can’t wait to try this salad. it looks so yummy! we have very similar foodie tastes, by the looks of your recipe blog! glad I found it!
After reading your blog, I made this for the ward Christmas party last Friday. Very yummy and definitely all gone at the end of the night. Thank you!
Glad you liked it, Jenn!
YUMMMMMM-O
I made this last night..
it was super good..
Thanks!