Thanksgiving Green Salad (Easy, Vegan)
I’m on a quest to make my salads absolutely delicious. It’s so easy to eat tons of vegetables if you can make a salad that is almost addicting.
As my brother has said, “What makes a salad good is a high quantity of non-salad ingredients in it.” Non-salad ingredients referring to things like bacon, nuts, cheese, fruit, etc. as opposed to lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc. I mean, he’s right. I won’t deny it. Whatever helps you eat those greens, right? However, those non-salad ingredients can be very high-cal low-nutrients, which kind of defeats the purpose of eating a salad in my book. So there has got to be a happy medium, right? That’s what I’m after.
I’ve made this three times in the past couple of weeks–once for a large church lunch and twice for dinners with friends at my house–and every time it is a hit. Soft, juicy pear slices OR crisp, skinny apple slices with glazed pecans or walnuts, chewy craisins, and a sweet maple balsamic dressing over fresh spring mix……it’s delicious! It’s also very quick to put together. The red, green, and white colors make it perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmastime.
Enjoy this staple fall salad!
Thanksgiving Green Salad (Pear Pecan Green Salad with Maple Balsamic Dressing)
Ingredients
- 8 cups spring mix
- 2 ripe pears, thinly sliced (I've used red or Bartlett), or apples
- 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts (halves or chopped)
- 1/2 TBSP maple syrup or honey
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- seeds from 1 pomegranate
Maple Balsamic Dressing
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp brown spicy mustard or Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Put nuts into a small skillet on the stove on medium heat. Toast for a minute or two, until fragrant but not burned. With the skillet hot, drizzle some maple syrup on top (about a half tablespoon but I don't measure), and stir while it sizzles. Remove from heat and let cool completely. You've made glazed nuts that are delicious on their own and in salads!
- In a glass measuring up, combine dressing ingredients and whisk together.
- Toss greens with dressing, then top with pears, glazed nuts, and cranberries. Pomegranate seeds are also beautiful and festive!
- This salad is very adaptable. If you don't have ripe pears, use apples. Use any nuts and seeds. Use other dried fruit or leave cranberries out if you prefer. Add sliced red onion, vegan feta, plant-based "bacon," roasted butternut squash or sweet potatoes. Many possibilities, hoever, I always make this the very simple way in 5 minutes (that's what makes it wonderful to me!).
Notes
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I made this for dinner tonight, and all five of us loved it. Instead of dried cranberries, I used pomegranate seeds, since I have a whole tree of them. Served it with homemade rolls and cantaloupe slices.
Yum! What a heathy dinner!
Our new favorite salad! Hands down! We love this! We brought this to Thanksgiving dinner with my fam and we’ve since been asked multiple times to bring the salad to other events because this is so delish! 😊 yum! Thanks for sharing!
Aw I’m so glad to hear that, Tasha! I like brining salads to things because they’re so fast and don’t require any cooking. 🙂
Oh man this salad is so delicious! I was at the church lunch she brought it to and asked for the recipe right away! I’ve made it a few times and it’s SO yummy! Huge fan.
Thanks for coming back to comment, Blythe! 🙂 So glad you enjoy it.
I nice blend of pears and pecans. Great salad!