Apple Cranberry Salad with Maple Buttermilk Dressing Recipe

Apple cranberry walnut or pecan salad in a bowl ready for sharing.

Apple Cranberry Salad with Maple Buttermilk Dressing Recipe

A fresh, versatile and easy to pull together salad, this Apple Cranberry Salad features fresh salad greens, apples, dried cranberries, nuts and blue cheese with a rich Maple Buttermilk Dressing. A seasonal delight with color and flavor! This recipe is vegetarian, egg free and easily gluten free.

*This recipe makes enough for four side salads or two hearty mains. It doubles with ease. See blog post for additional tips and variations.

Course Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Vegetarian

Keyword Apple Cranberry Salad

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 7

Total Time 22

Servings Side Servings

Calories 297kcal

Author Traci York

Ingredients

For the Dressing:

1/2 cup (130 grams) Buttermilk full fat or low fat
3 tablespoons Mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
1 tablespoon Prepared Whole Grain Mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons Maple Syrup add a touch more to taste
1/4 teaspoon each, Sea Salt and Black Pepper

For the Salad:

1/2 cup (65 grams) Pecan Halves
5 cups (110 grams) Salad Greens like butter, Frisée, spinach, mustard, loosely packed
1/3 cup (50 grams) Dried Cranberries *see note
2 cups (200 grams) Fresh Apple medium dice, about 1 large apple
1/4 cup (20 grams) Red Onion sliced into thin moons
1/3 cup (45 grams) Blue Cheese crumbled **(see note)
Micro Greens for garnish, optional

Instructions

Make the Dressing:

In a lidded jar, add the buttermilk, mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, mustard, maple syrup and salt and pepper. Shake until the ingredients are smooth and incorporated. Taste for sweet and seasoning adjustment. Set aside.

Make the Salad:

Oven: Preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit (180 Celsius). Place the pecans on a small baking pan and toast in the oven for about 5-7 minutes.
Stove Top: Toast the pecans in a pan on low to medium heat, tossing frequently for 2-3 minutes. They go from done to burnt quick so watch them closely, adjust the heat as needed.
The pecans are done when they're fragrant and slightly darker. Set aside to cool. Chop into bits or leave them whole.
In a large mixing bowl, add the washed and dried salad greens, top with apples, pecans, cranberries, red onion and blue cheese. Sprinkle with micro greens if using.
Dress the salad (you may not use all the dressing), toss and share.

Notes

*Dried Cranberries - look in the bulk bins for best value. You can use apple juice sweetened or cane sugar sweetened. If you like the tartness of cranberries, you can opt for unsweetened.

**Gluten Free: From my understanding not all blue cheese is gluten free. Check with individual cheese makers for gluten free certification.

Nutrition