i'm not neccessarily a big walnut fan. as a kid, every holiday season my mom always had a big bowl of "in the shell" nuts (mostly walnuts they were the least expensive) on the dining room table.
as a perplexed 5 year old, i often wondered why santa every year mostly filled my stocking up with walnuts and oranges -- both of which i could of grabbed myself from the kitchen table. it seemed a bit odd. he might as well have left underwear under the tree too. oh that's right he did.
as an adult, my issue with the little meaty nut, is that they sometimes can pack a bit of a bite. to alleviate any bites, i like to toast them up in a pan with a light sprinkling of brown sugar, a light drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. now these are walnuts ready to go... and i have the perfect salad for them.
PEAR, WALNUT and BLEU CHEESE SPINACH SALAD
this makes for a great fall/winter salad and is a cool fresh addition to all those rich heavy holiday meals.
FIX: 10-15 minutes
GOODS:
2 fresh PEARS
1 cup of lightly toasted/sweetened WALNUTS
1/2 cup of crumbled BLEU CHEESE
1 bag of fresh BABY SPiNACH
1 tablespoon of EXTRA ViRGiN OLiVE OiL
1 pinch of SEA SALT
CRACKED BLACK PEPPER
1/2 MEYER LEMON
TACKLE:
butcher's knife
salad serving tongs
chop board
salad bowl
GO:
grab a good size salad bowl and drop the bag of spinach in. slice up the PEARS and toss in. sprinkle the BLEU CHEESE and WALNUTS. give a pinch of SEA SALT and 2-3 round of CRACKED BLACK PEPPER. give a good squeeze of 1/2 a MEYER LEMON.
ASSEMBLAGE:
right before you serve... drizzle on your EXTRA ViRGiN OLiVE OiL and lightly toss.
FEEDS:
this fresh salad makes a tasty side dish for four.