Rosemary's Pear and Gorgonzola Salad
Rosemary is known for her amazing salads. This is one of her most-requested recipes. It has even been featured in the local newspaper!
Ingredients
Salad
- 1 cup walnut halves toasted
- 4 to 6 cups torn salad greens
- ½ cup vinaigrette (recipe follows)
- 2 pears peeled, cored and sliced
- ¼ lb. gorgonzola (or other bleu cheese)
Vinaigrette Dressing
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¾ cup virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoon shallots finely minced
- black pepper
Instructions
Salad
- Toss greens with most of the vinaigrette.
- Divide among four plates.
- Decorate with pear slices and crumbled cheese.
- Coarsely chop walnuts and put on top of salad.
- Drizzle last of the vinaigrette over top.
Vinaigrette Dressing
- To make vinaigrette, mix vinegar, salt, mustard in blender or food processor.
- Very slowly pour in oil while processor is on. Process until it thickens.
- Process until it thickens (an emulsion forms).
- Taste and adjust seasonings.
- Add shallots and pepper to taste.
Notes
This salad is great because you can use candied walnuts or pecans or whatever nuts you have on hand. The trick to make it look so good is to toss the mixed greens in the dressing first then sprinkle the nuts, fruit and bleu cheese on top last so it's not all tossed in with the lettuce, making for a prettier presentation.