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Large white bowl of apple salad served with wooden serving spoons.
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5 from 122 votes

Autumn Apple Salad with a Maple Vinaigrette

This easy to make Autumn Apple Salad is loaded up with crispy bacon, crunchy pecan halves, crumbled feta, and sweet dried cranberries. All drizzled with a homemade Maple Dijon Vinaigrette. This salad comes together in less than 15 minutes and is a perfect side dish or light lunch.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time5 minutes
Total Time10 minutes
Course: Salad
Cuisine: American
Servings: 2
Author: Serene

Ingredients

  • 2 cups baby spinach raw
  • ¼ cup dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup pecans halved
  • 2 tbsp feta cheese
  • ½ granny smith apple sliced
  • ½ fuji apple sliced
  • 2 slices bacon cooked and chopped

Maple Dijon Vinaigrette

  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • tsp dijon mustard
  • salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Make Dressing: Add all the ingredients for the maple dijon vinaigrette to a small mason jar. Shake to mix.
  • Layer Salad: Add the spinach to a medium size bowl or plate.
  • Top with dried cranberries, halved pecans, feta cheese, sliced apples, and cooked bacon.
  • Dress and Toss: Drizzle the salad dressing over the top of the salad, toss and serve.

Video

Notes

  • Apples: using two kinds of apples (Granny Smith and Fuji) gives more color to the salad it also gives a nice balanced sweet and tart flavoring.
  • Maple Syrup: use a Grade A maple syrup in this recipe.
  • Pecans: use halved pecans. Can be substituted with walnuts or left out if needed.
  • Make Ahead Instructions: If you need to slice and prepare the apples hours before serving use a water bath made of 1 cup of water mixed with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. After you slice the apples soak them in the lemon water for 3-5 minutes then remove and rinse them.
  • Storage: when preparing the salad ahead of time store the dressing separate from the salad to prevent the spinach from getting soggy. Dress the salad just before serving. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 478kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 405mg | Potassium: 409mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 2952IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 144mg | Iron: 2mg