With two fresh arugula plants in the ground for our first 4’x10’ garden plot, we have plenty of the wonderful tasting tender leafy green just outside our front door. Since it was hard to find any good ripe pears in our local stores we opted for canned pears, but fresh would be preferred if they were available from local sources. The grown for shipping variety is so hard, tasteless, and has a grainy texture it is just a waste of hard earned money to wait to ripen, just to see it turn to mush and have to toss it into the kitchen compost bin. We can find cheaper compost material for sure!
This salad is quick, easy, and tasty, but even tastier when using fresh from the garden ingredients.
Toasting the walnuts in a small sauté pan over a medium heat adds another flavor dimension to the salad, I liken it to the toasted almond slivers I like to add into my spinach salads. Same technique, different ingredients. Just take your walnuts and toss them every few minutes in a small sauté pan, or you can roast them in the oven set at 375° F on a sheet pan for about 20 minutes, turning half-way through process, or until lightly browned. The Creamy Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing is lightly tossed with the ingredients for a splendidly refreshing salad.
| Ingredients | ||
| 8 | Oz | Arugula leaves, washed and dried |
| 2 | Oz | Walnut pieces, toasted |
| 2 | Oz | Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled |
| 1 | Each | Pear, sliced into with portions |
| ¼ | Tsp | Cracked black pepper, fresh ground |
| Procedure Steps | |
| 1. | Toss the arugula with the walnuts, gorgonzola cheese, and pear slices then coat evenly with about ¼ cup of the Creamy Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing and toss well. |
| 2. | Evenly portion the salad between two plates and add more dressing for garnish. |
18 responses so far ↓
1 OC2Seattle // May 26, 2010 at 1:48 pm
What a delicious way to get your veggies in! I totally agree with you re the pears, I shudder to think how many I tossed before I learned local is the only way to go.
2 Jessie // May 26, 2010 at 2:40 pm
yumm! a super refreshing healthful salad on a hot summer day
3 so whats the deal with raspberry leaf tea? | Tea // May 26, 2010 at 4:27 pm
[…] Arugula Salad with Walnuts, Gorgonzola, and Creamy Raspberry … […]
4 pegasuslegend // May 26, 2010 at 5:14 pm
fabulous I love Raspberry, actually been eating that all week but I love the addtion of the pear and gorgonzola awesome~
5 Maria Filice // May 26, 2010 at 6:34 pm
Delicious! Agree … pears need to be sweet and ripe or they end up in the compost. this is one of favorite salads!
6 Ed Schenk // May 26, 2010 at 7:13 pm
Great salad! I love stinky cheese!
7 Roti n Rice // May 26, 2010 at 8:03 pm
Sounds like a delicious salad! I like the creamy raspberry vinaigrette dressing.
8 Cook with Madin // May 26, 2010 at 8:56 pm
Hi Chef Ryan, love this salad and I like the raspberry vinaigrette. Thank you for sharing.
9 Michelle | Print Posters // May 26, 2010 at 9:43 pm
I think the nuts and cheese are the ones that made this dish a real kicker. It’s also good that it is quite easy to prepare, and guests would love it.
10 penny aka jeroxie // May 27, 2010 at 4:55 am
Great to have your own little garden and able to enjoy the fuits of labour.
11 Emily @Cleanliness // May 27, 2010 at 10:01 am
Uh-mazing recipe. I love the combination of ingredients, topped off with the sweet raspberry vinaigrette! Yummm!
12 Michelle // May 27, 2010 at 10:54 am
This looks like the perfect salad for a summer evening!
13 Kiki // May 27, 2010 at 12:41 pm
This sounds very refreshing and looks very delightful 😛
14 Dawn@CocinaSavant // May 27, 2010 at 10:19 pm
looks great! i agree about the pears, i cant really find great ones here, so its best to wait and take a bushel home when we visit family in florida. looks tasty!
15 Kristi Rimkus // May 28, 2010 at 3:26 pm
This is such a crowd pleasing salad. I’ve made it with strawberries or sliced apples and it’s always gone in a flash. Delicious!
16 Doc // May 28, 2010 at 3:36 pm
What a perfect summer salad!
Nicely done Chef!
17 snoop // Jun 1, 2010 at 12:26 pm
nothing says Cajun cooking like an arugula salad with pears and gorgonzola.
18 Boudreaux Ryan // Jun 3, 2010 at 5:51 pm
Got dat rite snoop! Feeling & sharing a world of cooking ~ more than your average Cajun fare!