This quick and easy sophisticated salad is not only delicious but pretty when presented at your dinner meal. The freshness of the cranberries, goat cheese, and red onion mixed with the sweet and spicy pine nuts give it an extra special touch. I like to serve this salad with a simple lemon olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette.
Serves: 4-6
Active prep time: 10 minutes
Inactive prep time: 0 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 5oz package of baby spinach
- ½ cup pine nuts
- 3 Tbsp confectioners sugar
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup goat cheese crumbles
- ¼ cup red onion (diced)
Vinaigrette:
- ¾ cup lemon infused olive oil (or regular extra virgin olive oil and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice)
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
Directions:
For the pine nuts: Using a small saute pan set over medium low heat, add the pine nuts, confectioners sugar, cayenne pepper, and salt. Stir constantly until the sugar is melted and the pine nuts have turned a nice golden brown. (about 5 minutes). Remove the nuts and spread out on a sheet of parchment paper or plate and allow to cool. When ready to build your salad, break apart the clusters.
For the salad: Place the spinach, red onion, cranberries and toasted pine nuts into a large salad serving bowl. Toss to combine. Sprinkle the goat cheese crumbles on top and serve. You can also mix half a container of spinach with half a container of mixed salad greens.
For the vinaigrette: In a small mixing bowl or a salad dressing container, add the lemon infused olive oil and balsamic vinegar and stir/shake to comine. If you do not have lemon infused olive oil, you can mix regular extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar and then add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
