Pear, maple roasted pecan and rocket salad
A classic salad with the addition of delicious maple roasted pecans!
I am sure most of you have come across the popular Italian style salad of pear, walnut, rocket and Parmesan salad. And it's popular for a reason! It's simple, quick to make and delicious. It has a bit of richness from the nuts and cheese but ultimately I find it a light and refreshing salad due to all the peppery rocket. It's the perfect side salad for pizza, pasta and risotto. It's also still yummy without the Parmesan cheese if you don't eat dairy.
I have been making this salad with pecans instead of walnuts for so long now I can't remember why I started but I know I'll never go back! I love walnuts but they need to be super fresh to taste their best and so often when you buy them them they taste a bit old. I also like using pecans as I love their rich and buttery taste and because they are such a forgotten and underutilised but. How many many pecan recipes come to mind except pecan pie? Not many! Plus like all nuts, pecans are great for our health. Winning!
I couldn't resist adding a little maple syrup to the nuts before roasting and the maple flavour goes to well with the rest of the salad! Maple, pear and pecans are all best friends so of course they taste great together! This salad could easily become too sweet so it's important to make sure they is enough bite and sourness from the rocket and dressing. But I personally sometimes like a bit of sweetness in my salad, especially in the form of delicious crunchy golden maple flavoured pecans! When I make up a batch of the pecans, I have to hide them otherwise my family will eat them all before I get a chance to serve them in the salad!
I havre used lightly grilled pear in this recipe but it is equally as nice with fresh pear so the choice is yours. It's quicker just adding them in fresh and it makes the salad a little but lighter. But too be honest the grilled pear is just so much more aesthetically pleasing I usually choose that option. You can use any pear you like juts make sure they are firm, I choose pears that are just under-ripe. You could also use nashi with this recipe if you like.
Pear, maple pecan, rocket and Parmesan salad
Prep time: 20 minutes
Makes: 4 serves
Dietary Guide: The recipe is gluten free. To make it vegan omit the cheese and to make it FODMAP friendly replace the pear with fresh red grapes.
Ingredients
2 small-medium firm pears
Squeeze of lemon juice
125g of rocket
½ cup of shaved Parmesan or Pecorino cheese (I recommend shaving your own from a block instead of buying pre-shaved)
100g of fresh whole pecans
15g of caster sugar
25g of maple syrup
2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of walnut or olive oil
Salt and pepper
Method
Pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the pecans, sugar, maple syrup and a pinch of salt in a small mixing bowl. Mix well and pour onto the baking paper ensuring an even single layer of nuts. Bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes stirring a few times. When they have turned a dark golden colour, remove from the oven and let cool. Roughly chop into long slivers.
Slice the pears longways into even thin slices – you should get about 8-10 slices per pear. Heat a frypan on a medium heat and drizzle with a little olive oil. Grill the slices of pear for about 2 minutes on each side or until they have just taken on some colour. Do this in batches as it is important to not overcrowd the pan. Set aside to cool. If your prefer to keep the pears fresh, simply slice and gently toss with a squeeze of lemon juice to stop oxidisation.
In a medium bowl toss the rocket with 2 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon of walnut or olive oil, a good pinch of salt and lots of black pepper. Taste and adjust to your liking if needed.
Gently fold through the shaved Parmesan, pecans and the pears reserving a few pears and pecans for garnish. Transfer to a salad platter or individual plates and top with the leftover pear and nuts and some extra cracked pepper. Enjoy. Best consumed just after making.
