Arugula and Pear Salad

My Favourite Salads

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_8704I made this salad many months ago, posted it in the dashboard and forgot about it. Arugula (rocket) is one of my favourite salads. Everyone has mixed feelings about Arugula. Some people like me, love it, others say they don’t like it because it has an undesirable taste, more like ‘dirt’ and others describe it as kind of spicy and bitter with a punch of garlic. It’s peppery and slightly bitter, but that’s what I love about it.

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_8703Some people cook it. I don’t. I mostly add it to salads, or sandwiches, or pasta or soups, just before serving. It’s also great on pizzas and omelettes and makes a great Pesto, together with walnuts, olive oil and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. I don’t know how you feel about Arugula. Please share with me!

  • White Wine Vinegar Dressing with Shallots Ingredients 
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon minced shallots
  • ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_7975Please always remember to assemble all ingredients before you start

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_7979Combine olive oil, vinegar, minced shallots, and mustard in a small jar.

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_7981Shake well to mix. Season with salt and pepper.

  • Salad Ingredients 
  • 100g (2 cups) fully packed baby arugula leaves (rocket, rucola)
  • 1-2 Bosc or Anjou or Bartlett pears, unpeeled, cored and thinly sliced
  • ½ cup toasted walnuts, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup shaved parmesan

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_7984Please always remember to assemble all ingredients before you start.

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_7987Combine arugula and pears in a bowl. Then divide onto four chilled plates.

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_8701Top each plate with walnuts, cranberries, cheese, and drizzle with the vinaigrette.

Arugula and Pear Salad myfavouritepastime.com_0774Serve

Arugula and Pear Salad

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • Salad Ingredients
  • 100g (2 cups) fully packed baby arugula leaves (rocket, rucola)
  • 1-2 Bosc or Anjou or Bartlett pears, unpeeled, cored and thinly sliced
  • ½ cup toasted walnuts, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup shaved parmesan cheese 
  • White Wine Vinegar Dressing with Shallots ingredients 
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon minced shallots
  • ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Toast nuts in a small pan over medium heat until fragrant.
  2. Combine olive oil, vinegar, minced shallots, and mustard in a small jar. Shake well to mix. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Combine arugula and pears in a bowl. Divide onto four chilled plates.
  4. Top each plate with walnuts, cranberries, cheese, and drizzle with the vinaigrette.

Points to Note:

  1. Serve the salad on chilled plates to help keep the greens crisp.
  2. Dress the salad just before serving, especially when using vinaigrette.
  3. You can use any other pear you prefer.

 

Author: Liz

I love everything food: eating, cooking, baking and travelling. I also love photography and nature.

53 thoughts

  2. I love having arugula from time to time. This looks like such a great recipe – pairing it with something sweet like pears and then Parmesan, too. So delicious.

    Reply

  4. Wow – you’ve been ‘a busy girl’ !! This looks amazing! You’re keeping me busy ’cause I’m Pinning everything you’ve posted recently!

    Reply

    1. Oh Cecile, I am trying to balance so many things in life, kids inclusive, so I never fined time to pin anything. You are so amazing. Thanks so much for pinning on my behalf. I truly appreciate your kindness. I wish you the best in everything you do. Thanks so much for being such a wonderful friend too!
      Liz

      Reply

      1. When I was teaching (or was finishing Grad.School) I had a family which included a husband and twin boys, whose friends pretty much lived at our house, I did a good amount of volunteering etc… plus drove my boys around A LOT every day… yet I still kept both of our homes clean (we had another house in the Pocono mountains years ago) and cooked like crazy….. Now… in an entire day I get done about what I would’ve accomplished in about two hours before…..!!!

        Reply

        3. Ha ha priorities change in life.” If you want work done, give it to a busy person”….busy people seem to accomplish more. I totally understand what you mean. I’ve become so lazy,It’s beyond redemption. Have a great week!
          Liz

    1. Oh I agree with you Sophie, caramelized pears are a hundred times better. Please give me a tutorial on how to like your page. I only have a page not a profile. I shall try again now! Thanks!
      Liz

      Reply

  7. Yum! I am in the LOVE arugula category! Too bad the season can’t last longer in our garden. It was so nice to be able to go outside and pick it fresh! Love the pears and cranberries too. The dressing looks wonderful as well.

    Reply

    1. Thank God you love Arugula too. I thought I was the only one. Fresh arugula is something I would love to have at my disposal. Thanks for complimenting. Have a great weekend!
      Liz

      Reply

      1. The boys like to eat the arugula right out of the garden too. They walk out there claiming they want a healthy snack and say something along the lines of “yum, spicy lettuce”!

        Reply

  8. I love arugula! Its spicy slightly bitter taste is part of what I like so much. I usually eat it in salads, or tossed with roasted vegetables right before serving or (my favorite) put on a pizza. This salad looks divine — all sorts of good things in it!

    Reply

        1. You’ve not missed any posts. I just haven’t talked to you in a long time. But you’re always in my mind…have a great weekend and a lovely summer!
          Liz

  12. Arugula was a mainstay of my mother’s Italian-American kitchen when I was a boy. I put it in the category of one more food from my youth that’s made a wider comeback these days, like lentils and artichokes.

    Reply

    1. Oh I’m glad to know it was mainstay for your family. My mother loved lentils and she still does. Enjoy the weekend!
      Liz

      Reply

    1. I totally agree, first Cilantro-cashew and now arugula too. I love a lot of recipes on your blog by the way. I’ve been planning to cook from there. I hope I will very soon! Enjoy the weekend!
      Liz

      Reply

    1. Hi Jessie,
      Oh now you’re making me drool over pears I haven’t even seen…I would love to taste them some day. thanks for visiting my blog and enjoy the weekend!
      Liz

      Reply

    1. oh yes it’s also called rocket. The secret is not to eat too much. It’s like a dressing in itself!!! Have a great weekend!
      Liz

      Reply

Leave a Reply to thebrookcook Cancel reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.