Apple Cranberry Spinach Salad
User Reviews
5
Apple Cranberry Spinach Salad
Description
The Apple Cranberry Spinach Salad brings together fresh spinach leaves and crisp apple slices, typically Fuji or Pink Lady, for sweetness and crunch. Dried cranberries are softened by briefly heating with water to create juiciness without chewiness. Slivered almonds are toasted with olive oil, honey, and kosher salt in the oven, enhancing their flavor and providing a crunchy contrast. The dressing is made by shaking together olive oil, honey, apple cider vinegar, garlic, salt, black pepper, and poppy seeds, producing a tangy-sweet vinaigrette with subtle spice notes.
The salad combines crisp greens and fruit with the sweetness of cranberries and honeyed almonds, balanced by the citrusy-acidic dressing. The mixture of textures—from tender spinach to crunchy almonds and juicy apples—makes the salad interesting to eat. It works well as a refreshing side dish or a light, nutritious option on its own.
Ingredients like the dressing, toasted almonds, and plumped cranberries can be prepared up to a day in advance and refrigerated separately to save time before assembly. The recipe also offers a tip for easier pomegranate arils extraction to simplify adding this component.
Ingredients
- For the almonds:
- 1 cup almonds slivered
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons honey
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- To plump the dried cranberries:
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon water
- For the dressing:
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 garlic finely minced, medium clove
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
- FOR THE SALAD:
- 8 cups baby spinach
- 1 large apple I like Fugi or Pink Lady, quartered, cored and thinly sliced, crisp, red
- ½ cup pomegranate arils or seeds
Instructions
- For the almonds, preheat the oven to 300˚F. Line a sheet pan with foil. Combine slivered almonds, olive oil, honey and kosher salt on the sheet pan and stir to combine. Don’t worry if the honey doesn’t coat all the nuts. Bake for 5 minutes, then stir to redistribute. Repeat 2-3 times (baking 5 minutes, then stirring) until almonds are light golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven, stir to separate, then set aside to cool. (See note below* on advance preparation.)
- Combine cranberries and 1 tablespoon water in a small microwave-safe glass (or ceramic) cup or bowl. Cover with microwave-safe plastic wrap and cook on high for 40 seconds. Remove from microwave and set aside to cool. (See note below* on advance preparation.)
- Combine all dressing ingredients in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Cover tightly and shake well. Set aside. (See note below* on advance preparation.)
- For the salad, combine spinach and apple slices. Drizzle ¼ cup of the dressing over the salad. Top with dried cranberries, pomegranates and almonds. Toss before serving. Pass extra dressing at the table.
Notes
- Prepare the plumped cranberries a day ahead and store in the refrigerator until use.
- Make the dressing up to one day in advance and keep refrigerated until serving.
- Toast almonds a day before and store them in an airtight container at room temperature for freshness.
- For easy pomegranate aril removal, refer to specialized tutorials that avoid mess and waste.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 8Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 266 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 266kcal | 13% |
| Carbohydrates | 18g | 6% |
| Protein | 4g | 8% |
| Fat | 21g | 32% |
| Saturated Fat | 3g | 15% |
| Sodium | 244mg | 10% |
| Potassium | 322mg | 7% |
| Fiber | 4g | 16% |
| Sugar | 11g | 22% |
| Vitamin A | 2828IU | 57% |
| Vitamin C | 11mg | 12% |
| Calcium | 78mg | 8% |
| Iron | 2mg | 11% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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