Pear and Raspberry Salad

I went to a friend's house last week where we had some crepes.  She had bought the most beautiful raspberries to go on them, and they tasted so so good!  So when I got home, naturally I wanted to buy some myself...and I did.  I just happened across this recipe browsing Pinterest one morning and it sounded perfect!  It was a very light and refreshing lunch, perfect for any weekday or it would even impress dinner guests!  

Pear and Raspberry Salad
Servies 4-6


4 cups romaine, chopped
1 cup raspberries
2 pears, thinly sliced
½ cup shelled pistachios
½ cup crumbled feta cheese
Creamy Poppyseed Dressing:
⅓ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup 2% milk
3 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons cider vinegar
2 teaspoons poppy seeds

To make the dressing: Whisk together in a small bowl mayonnaise, milk, sugar, cider vinegar, and poppyseeds. Set aside.

In a large bowl add tossed romaine, raspberries, pears, pistachios, and feta cheese. Toss the salad. Add the poppyseed dressing and carefully toss to coat all of the ingredients. Serve immediately.

Recipe Source:  The Recipe Critic

Pear, Blue Cheese, and Walnut Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

I think I have mentioned I am in the middle of a Weight Loss War.  I am not winning.  That doesn't mean I am not trying!  In my quest for new healthy salads, I came across this one that looked interesting.  I loved the vinaigrette, very different from anything I have tried before.  It was a great lite dinner :)

Pear, Blue Cheese and Walnut Salad

Green leafy lettuce (arugula, spinach, mixed greens)
red pear, sliced thin
blue cheese crumbles (not a fan? Try feta :)
walnuts

Maple Syrup Vinaigrette

4 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
salt

Place all of the above ingredients in a small jar and shake, then drizzle over the salad.

Recipe Source:  Drizzle and Dip

Chicken with Spicy Pear Salsa

I love grilled chicken breasts with fruit salsa.  Here is my latest version...with pears!  The flavors sounded a little off to me, but they worked.  Lets be honest, I'll probably love anything that has cilantro in it :)

Chicken with Spicy Pear Salsa

From:  Fruit and Veggie Guru

1 firm but ripe Red Anjou Pear, peeled, cored and chopped
1/4 cup diced sweet onion
2 T. chopped fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced
2 t. sliced jalapeno peppers, finely minced
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 T. extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper

In a small bowl combine pear, onion, cilantro, garlic and jalapeno peppers.  Set aside.

Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper.

Over medium high heat, heat olive oil in large skillet. Place chicken breasts into pan and brown well on each side.  Cover pan and reduce heat to low.  Keep covered until chicken is cooked through.

Remove chicken from pan and place onto serving plates.

Heat pan over high heat, add salsa to the pan and quickly heat salsa while deglazing pan.

Pour salsa over chicken breast and serve.

Pasta with Spicy Chicken Sausage and Pears

The other day we went to Sam's Club, and my hubby found some spicy sausages he really wanted, having no idea what to do with these particular sausages, I came home and set out on a search.  This recipe is what I came across.  I liked the idea of it, because it used a pear...and I do love using seasonal ingredients!  This really was good, something different.  The sausage gives it most of it's flavor, so make sure you buy a great sausage!


Pasta with Spicy Chicken Sausage and Pears
From:  Fruit and Veggie Guru

12 oz. fettuccini pasta
1-lbs. spicy chicken sausage, cut into ½” thick slices (we got some habenero with monterey jack ones at Sam's Club)
1 T. olive oil
1 1/2 cups white wine
1 1/2 cups red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 Red Anjou pear, cored and cut into matchstick slices
1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Prepare fettuccini according to package instructions.

In large sauté pan over medium heat, sauté sausage in olive oil until sausage is cooked through and browned.  Remove sausage from pan and set aside.

Add peppers to pan and sauté until slightly tender.

Add pears to pan and sauté until heated through but still crisp.  Remove peppers and pears and set aside.

Add wine to the pan and bring to a boil, scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Continue to boil until reduced by half.

Add sausage, peppers and pears to the wine and toss to coat.

In a large serving bowl toss the freshly prepared pasta with the sausage mixture.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.

Autumn Chopped Salad

Yes...there is lettuce underneath all that goodness!


I had a few gals over for lunch today, and was wanting a salad of some type, and again, Pinterest was where I turned.  I am getting quite the collection of 'to try' recipes on there (see here for more!)


This recipe was really great.  I was a bit leery when it told me to combine 2 different salad dressings, but they actually worked really well together.  The combo of ingredients was great, and anything with feta I am usually up for!  Enjoy.

Autumn Chopped Salad

From: Espresso and Cream

6 to 8 cups chopped romaine lettuce (2-3 heads of romaine, eyeball it to your taste)

3 chicken breasts, cooked and diced (not in original recipe, I added it because I served it as an entree)

2 medium pears, chopped

1 cup dried cranberries

1 cup chopped pecans

8 slices thick-cut bacon, crisp-cooked and crumbled

4 to 6 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

Poppy seed Salad Dressing, your favorite brand

Balsamic Vinaigrette, your favorite brand

On a large platter, combine the lettuce, pears, cranberries, pecans, bacon and feta cheese. Drizzle generously with poppy seed dressing, followed by some of the balsamic vinaigrette. (I would estimate that I used about a cup of dressing: 70 percent poppy seed dressing and 30 percent balsamic vinaigrette) If you prefer your salad to have more dressing, feel free to experiment with the combination.

Winter Salad with Lemon Poppyseed Dressing

I'm not sure why this is called winter salad....the apples remind me of FALL, and the dressing is nice and refreshing, which screams SUMMER.  In any case, this salad was tasty!  I found this while scoping out See Jane in the Kitchen.  You must try :)  It reminds me of Panera's Summer Salad, just with different fruit.

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 tsp diced green onion (or just onion)
1 tsp Dijon-style mustard
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup veg oil
1 Tbs poppy seeds
1 head Romain lettuce or a mixture of different kinds of lettuce (I used more lettuce, 1 didn't look like near enough, I used 2)
4 oz shredded Swiss cheese (I cut up some swiss cheese slices instead)
1 cup slivered almonds. (or you can use cashews if you want)
1/4 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)
1 apple-peeled, cored and diced
1 pear-peeled, cored and diced

1. In a blender or food processor, combine sugar, lemon juice, onion, mustard and salt. Process until well blended. Add oil in slow steady stream until mixture is thick and smooth. Add poppy seeds and process just a few seconds more to mix.

2. In a large serving bowl combine the lettuce, shredded Swiss cheese, almonds, dried cranberries, cubed apple and cubed pear. Toss to mix then pour dressing over salad just before serving and toss to coat.