Pear Salad

Pear salad is an easy and simple dish you and your guests will love.

Tender sweet ripe pears that melt in your mouth meet slightly bitter salad greens, juicy oranges, crunchy almonds, creamy ricotta (which you can replace with a spicy pecorino), sour cranberries, and a quick and easy balsamic vinegarette to tie all flavors together.

It's a dance of sweet and sour, soft and crunchy, fresh and creamy. It's a favorite winter salad; we hope you'll love it as much as we do.

Pears

You can use most pear varieties as long as you pick perfectly ripe pears.

To pick perfectly ripe pears, apply gentle pressure with your thumb to the top part of the pear (the stem or the neck). They are ripe when they yield to pressure.

If you have unripe pears at home, place them in a fruit bowl at room temperature near other fruit like bananas and let them ripen for a few days.

Our favorite variety for pear salad is Bartlett pear (also known as Williams pears) because they are incredibly juicy when ripe.

Other excellent varieties are Anjou pears and red Anjou, Bosc pears, Comice pears, Concorde pears, and Forelle pears.

Orange

Like pears, it's best if you can find ripe oranges. They are sweeter and less tart.

Mixed greens

You can use a pre-washed mixed greens bag you can find in most supermarkets. Ensure it contains some slightly bitter greens like arugula or radicchio to have a perfect flavor match with pears.

An excellent mixed green leaf bag would have three or more of lettuce, baby lettuces, Romaine lettuce, endive, mustards, baby spinach, watercress, arugula, radicchio, kale, and other tender salad greens.

Ricotta cheese

Ricotta is a perfect match to pears with its creamy texture and milky flavor. For a sharper, chewier texture, you can substitute pecorino cheese (like pecorino Romano or pecorino Sardo) for ricotta.

Goat cheese, gorgonzola cheese, blue cheese, parmesan cheese, and feta cheese are also excellent alternatives for this pear salad recipe.

To keep the salad dairy-free, you can opt for homemade soy ricotta or a store-bought cashew-based or almond-based cheese.

Almonds

Toasted almonds or other toasted nuts, such as walnuts, hazelnuts, and pecans, add a great crunch and nutty taste to the salad. Chop them up before adding them in.

Dried cranberries

Dried fruit like dried cranberries, apricots, figs, plums, and raisins are an excellent chewy and sweet addition to this salad. Pick your favorite, and chop them up before adding them in.

Vinaigrette

Keep this pear salad dressing simple because the fruit is plenty juicy and helps make the salad super flavorful. You don't want too many flavors melding with fresh pears and oranges.

We recommend a fruity good quality extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and black pepper.

To make a creamier and richer dressing, you can add maple syrup (or honey) and Dijon mustard (or American mustard).

Rinse the mixed green leaves if necessary, shake most of the water off, and add them to a large bowl.

Cut the pears in half, core them, then cut them into slices. Add the pear slices to the bowl.

Peel the orange, remove as much white flesh as possible, separate the wedges, and cut them in half. Add them to the bowl.

Add in the cranberries and chopped almonds.

Whisk the extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper in a small bowl, then pour the vinaigrette into the salad and toss.

Add small dollops of ricotta on top and serve.

This pear salad is lovely as a side dish, an appetizer for weeknight dinners, or special occasions such as Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Serve it as a starter with a side of bread, such as:

• No-knead focaccia with rosemary.
• Easy 10-minute crostini with a brush of oil and garlic.
• Italian bruschetta with eggplant or olive tapenade.

Or serve it as a vibrant side dish with a main of your choice, for example:

• Eggplant Parmigiana with tender slices of eggplant and real Italian flavor.
• Easy pasta bake: an easy and comforting recipe with pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese.
• Mushroom pasta with chewy sautéed mushrooms and fresh herbs.
• Tasty marinated tofu with a charred and jerky-like texture, a tasty plant-based dinner idea!

Refrigerator: store leftover pear salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 24 hours.

Freezer: this dish is not suitable for freezing.

Questions

If you're looking for side salads or appetizer ideas for autumn or the holiday season, take a look at these vibrant and wholesome salad ideas:

• Red cabbage salad with orange wedges, white beans, and mustard dressing
• Fennel salad with pomegranate seeds and juicy orange slices
• Shaved Brussels sprout salad with dried cranberries and a sweet and tangy dressing
• Green bean salad with cherry tomatoes and crumbled feta
• Easy carrot salad with walnuts, grated carrots, and apple
• Black bean salad with roasted sweet potato, corn, and Mexican flavors
• Cauliflower salad with roasted cauliflower, tahini dressing, and chickpeas
• Lentil sweet potato salad with creamy cumin dressing, it's a perfect Thanksgiving dish!

For many more salad ideas, check out our salads category page.

When autumn and winter are upon us, we love using pears and seasonal fruits in baked goods and savory dishes. Try some of our favorite fruit recipes here:

• Easy pear cake with just 8 ingredients and an easy preparation method
• Baked pears with cinnamon syrup, a super easy weekday treat!
• Favorite apple cake with 5 minutes prep time and 7 ingredients only
• Blueberry cake with lemon: a light and airy autumn cake