Bite sized kale tossed with dried cranberries, pomegranate arils, sweet Gala apples, and candied pecans, then drizzled with poppyseed dressing. This kale salad with cranberries, apples, and candied pecans is delicious, refreshing, and perfect for fall.
I adore salads.
I know, I know. Some of you may disagree with me. I mean, salads are technically just a ton of leaves tossed with a sweet and savory dressing. What’s so special about them?
Well, if your salads are all greens , then maybe, just maybe, I’ll have to agree with you. It does sound kind of boring.
But the salads I like to eat, the ones I’m absolutely addicted to, tend to be filled with colors, flavors, and textures.
The crispness of the apples, the nuttiness of the pecans, the sweetness of the dried cranberries, the slight tartness of the pomegranates. So many different flavors and textures that work so well together.
Take your favorite green base. You can use kale, spinach, arugula, lettuce. Anything you like.
Sprinkle your favorite toppings over the greens. You can use fruits such as oranges, grapefruits, apples, pomegranates, berries, peaches, maybe your favorite nuts such as pecans, almonds, walnuts. Drizzle your favorite dressing over everything and toss all the ingredients until they are well combined.
To make this salad, you only need a few ingredients.
First, tear up the kale into small bite size pieces. You can also cut them up. But I prefer tearing so that they have more texture and appear more rustic. Drizzle olive oil over the kale and massage them. Kale has a tough texture. But when you massage the olive oil into the kale, the kale softens and is so much easier to consume. At least that’s what I think, anyway.
Top the kale with dried cranberries, pomegranate arils, sliced sweet or sour apples, and candied pecans. You can easily make candied pecan in about 5 minutes. Or just toast the pecans for a healthier option.
I paired this salad with a poppyseed dressing. You can buy the dressing or make your own.
Toss all the ingredients together and you have one epic salad for fall.
Enjoy!
Come join me and other food bloggers at Fiesta Friday.
- 2 cups kale leaves, torn
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
- ⅛ cup dried cranberries, more to taste
- ⅛ cup pomegranate arils, more to taste
- ¼ cup candied pecans, more to taste
- ¼ - ½ apple, sliced
- Poppy seed dressing, homemade or store bought
- Add olive oil to the kale and massage the kale until the leaves have softened.
- Next, add the cranberries, pomegranate arils, candied pecans, and slices of apple to the kale. Toss until evenly distributed.
- Serve the salad with poppy seed dressing.
Andrea, your salad is so colorful and inviting. I love the idea of toasting pecans, and your picture is perfect too. Hope you’re having a wonderful weekend so far, and thanks for bringing this salad to the fiesta!
Great salad, love the combination. I must admit that I also adore a simple green salad of the freshest greens with a simple dressing of oil and vinegar.
What a pretty salad – simple and very colorful. I would have to use a different green but everything else sounds wonderful 🙂 Happy FF!
This salad looks delicious and pretty all at once!! When summer tomatoes and fruits go out, it’s a great idea to add apples to your salad. thanks!
Such a beautiful fall salad!!
Looks delicious.
Perfect fall flavored salad! Yum! Will be making this shortly!
Oh, that looks good. Love pecans and walnuts in salad.
We love kale, but there aren’t a lot of recipes that give it the attention it deserves. Cannot wait to try this….