Pear Gorgonzola Salad – A Couple Cooks

This candy and savory pear gorgonzola salad is a 5 star facet dish! Juicy pears mingle with creamy cheese and maple pecans, all tossed in a tangy balsamic French dressing dressing.

In case you’re searching for an all star facet dish, this pear gorgonzola salad is the one. This beautiful little salad can have you smitten, and it tastes simply nearly as good as these swoon-worthy images we took! It’s a celebration of flavors and textures, with juicy pears, funky cheese, dried cherries, and maple pecans glazed rapidly in a skillet. It’s all tossed in our go-to balsamic French dressing dressing, and from first chunk it would have you ever wanting extra!

Forms of pears for pear gorgonzola salad

There are a number of various kinds of pears you could find on the grocery retailer. Just about something you could find works for this pear gorgonzola salad! The most typical varieties you’ll discover at grocery shops within the States are:

• Bartlett pear: This traditional pear is often inexperienced with a rounded form. It’s recognized for its mushy, juicy flesh and candy taste.
• Anjou pear (proven in images): This pear is available in each inexperienced and pink varieties. Anjou pears are barely firmer than Bartletts and have a extra balanced candy and tart taste.
• Bosc pear: This sort has a deep brown pores and skin with contemporary, juicy flesh that has earthy notes.

The way to ripen pears

Pears that you just purchase from the grocery retailer are sometimes very agency and might take some time to ripen. They give the impression of being much like apples, however you possibly can consider them extra by way of bananas in terms of ripening. Listed here are some tips about how one can ripen pears:

• The quickest strategy to ripen pears is to position them in a paper bag. Go away them at room temperature and they need to be ripe in 2 to 4 days.
• In a bowl on the counter, pears ripen in about 4 to 7 days. Examine them by gently urgent the flesh to see whether it is tender.
• Don’t place pears within the fridge till they’re ripe. The fridge slows the ripening course of. In case you place them within the fridge instantly, they’ll be rock laborious. Enable them to ripen first, then refrigerate solely if you wish to delay consuming them.

Suggestions for maple glazed pecans

A enjoyable accent for this pear gorgonzola salad is the short maple glazed pecans. Our normal recipe for candied pecans is baked and takes about half-hour. If we’re seeking to whip up a salad and we don’t have candied nuts readily available, we make these maple pecans!

It takes simply 5 minutes: you toast the nuts within the skillet, then add cinnamon and salt for 30 seconds. Flip off the warmth and stir within the maple syrup. It’s such a small quantity that it’ll caramelize rapidly with the residual warmth of the pan. Set them on a plate to dry when you make the remainder of the salad!

Gorgonzola vs blue cheese

Can you utilize blue cheese in a pear gorgonzola salad? Sure! Gorgonzola and blue cheese are phrases which can be typically used interchangeably, however blue cheese is definitely a class of cheese whereas gorgonzola is a sort of blue cheese. Both cheese works right here!

• Gorgonzola is a cheese made in Italy. It’s comprised of cow’s milk and has a milder taste in comparison with different blue cheeses. Its texture varies from creamy and spreadable to crumbly, relying on the getting old course of.
• Blue cheese is a class of cheeses with blue veining from comprised of edible molds. This encompasses a wider vary of sorts, comprised of milks like cow, goat, or sheep (gorgonzola is a sort of blue cheese). Blue cheeses you discover on the retailer could be a lot stronger and sharper than gorgonzola.

Dressing variations for pear gorgonzola salad

This pear gorgonzola salad is scrumptious with the balsamic French dressing listed within the recipe beneath, which is one in all our favourite salad dressing recipes on this web site! Nonetheless, it really works with different vinaigrette-style dressings as effectively. Attempt one of many following:

Topping concepts

There are a great deal of concepts for various toppings for a pear gorgonzola salad. Hold the greens and pears however swap in several cheese, nuts or different mix-ins for a flexible facet. Listed here are a few of our prime concepts:

• Dried cranberries or raisins can stand in for the cherries.
• Pomegranate seeds make an attractive pop of shade and will additionally substitute dried cherries.
• Feta crumbles or goat cheese crumbles work effectively as an alternative choice to the cheese.
• Walnuts work in the identical method because the maple pecans.
• Or, swap in almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, or pine nuts (strive toasting them first for the very best taste).
• Use pepitas so as to add one other crunchy ingredient.

Add protein to make it a predominant dish

This pear gorgonzola salad works in any season, although it’s an excellent fall salad or winter salad. It may be made into an prompt predominant dish by topping with a protein. It really works effectively with hen or salmon, although you might additionally add tofu as a vegetarian protein. Listed here are some recipes for cooking the protein:

Extra salad recipes

Fruit served over greens with nuts and a French dressing is our fashion of salad! Listed here are some extra of our favourite salad recipes that incorporate fruit: