Apple Salad Recipe – A Heart-Healthy Side Dish

I have absolutely fallen in love with this heart-healthy apple salad. Everything about it is perfect. The quantity and complementary tastes of each ingredient gives you that perfect mouthful of explosive tastes with each bite. And the best thing is, it’s super healthy. To go with the healthiest option, opt-out of making candied pecans and just add pecans. Healthier for you and also makes the prep time much less.

Enjoy having fun tossing this salad, making your own homemade dressing, and enjoy it until the last bite. Honestly, it’s so good, that I need to come up with another salad recipe so that I can alternate. I’d would be so sad to grow old of this one…it’s just perfect!

Eat Well, Be Happy!

Heart Healthy Delicious Apple Salad

A delicious healthy salad that is irresistible. Customize to your liking, but I prefer the combination of blue cheese crumbles with apple slices, dried cranberries, and pecans, mixed in a dijon mustard vinaigrette. You just have to try it! Also, be sure to always use organic ingridients as it will make a huge difference in the taste of this dish.

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Servings 6 people

Difficulty Easy

Equipment

• Mixing Bowl (Large)
• Salad Mixing Spoons
• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Skillet
• Whisk

Ingredients

  

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For Candied Pecans

• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
• 1/4 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Kosher Salt
• 2 tbsp Water
• 1 cup Pecans Organic

For Dressing

• 2 tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 1/2 tbsp Dijon Mustard
• 1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/2 Shallot Finely Chopped

For Salad

• 6 cups Mixed Greens Or substitute with Spinach
• 1 Apples Organic Honeycrisp or Fuji Apples
• 1/4 cup Crumbled Blue Cheese
• 1/4 cup Dried Cranberries Organic

Instructions

 

Candied Pecans

• Heat water, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a skillet over medium heat.
• Stir until sugar and cinnamon are dissolved
• Add pecans and toss until completely covered
• Simmer for 5 minutes until sticky and then remove from heat.
• Place candied pecans on parchment paper in a single layer and let cool. (Note: for any pecans you don't use, you can keep for up to 5-7 days).

Dressing

• Whisk together rice vinegar, shallot, dijon mustard, and olive oil in a glass bowl.

Salad

• Thinly slice apples to your preference.
• Combine mixed greens, sliced apples, candied pecans, crumbled blue cheese, and dried cranberries in a large bowl.
• Drizzle salad with dressing, toss, and serve immediately.

Notes

Serving Size:
This recipe yields 6 to 8 servings. For those looking to create a salad for 2 adults. We recommend to create the dressing and candied pecans as described above. For the salad itself, you can use half of the quantities listed. You can then keep the pecans and dressing in the refrigerator to create another salad later in the week.

Healthier Version:
For an even healthier version of this salad, skip the work of creating candied pecans and just use pecans, swap out mixed greens for spinach, and add chopped yellow or red onions.

Other Tip:
The important thing to follow in this recipe is the quantities listed for the salad ingredients. Add greens to your mixing bowl with all ingredients and toss. Add greens as needed to create a good balance between the cranberries, crumbled blue cheese, and pecans. Experiment with the balance to see what you like best. Refer to our photo for a good idea.

Keyword Apple, Healthy, Heart Healthy, Salad

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If you are interested in commonly used ingredients for Japanese dishes, read this post: A Guide to Japanese Cooking Ingredients

For other heart-healthy recipes, check out this page on Mayoclinic.com

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