Roasted Apple Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette

An unbelievably delicious roasted apple salad for your Thanksgiving menu! Crispy bacon, creamy blue cheese, and olive oil fried pecans give this salad so much rich depth of flavor. It’s sweet & salty, full of texture, and drizzled with a caramelized shallot vinaigrette. One of the best salads that has come out of my kitchen to date! 

Roasted Apple Salad

fried pecans

Thanksgiving is just days away, and while I’m a little bit behind getting all of my planned recipes to the blog this year, I’m going to be sharing a bunch of new dishes by tomorrow! Hopefully just in time for your Thanksgiving planning.

First up, this roasted apple salad. It’s so good you’ll keep coming back for bite after bite. It’s a blend of arugula and baby kale tossed with roasted apples, fried pecans, crispy bacon, blue cheese, and golden raisins. All dressed in a sweet & tangy vinaigrette made of caramelized shallots, maple syrup, and apple cider vinegar.

Roasted Apple Salad

Roasted Apple Salad

It is perfect and definitely should make an appearance on your holiday table! Along with a simple roasted turkey and some creamy whipped potatoes, of course!

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Roasted Apple Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette

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a sweet & salty salad full of arugula, spring mix, roasted apples, olive oil fried pecans, bacon, blue cheese, raisins, and a caramelized shallot vinaigrette

servings: 6

Ingredients

Scale
  • 12 oz raw, sliced bacon
  • 1 ¼ lbs gala apples, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup pecans
  • kosher salt
  • olive oil
  • 2 shallots, thinly sliced
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • ¼ cup + 2 tbsp olive oil
  • freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1 (5 oz) container mixed greens
  • 2 large handfuls arugula
  • 6 oz blue cheese (1 sm wedge), crumbled
  • ¾ cup raisins

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lay the bacon out onto a sheet pan. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until crisp. Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside. Pour 1 tablespoon of the hot bacon fat into a 12″ skillet. Leave the remaining on the sheet pan.
  2. Increase the oven temperature to 425°F. Add the sliced apples to the sheet pan, spreading them in an even layer. Roast the apples for 10 minutes. Give the apples a flip and roast for another 5 minutes, or until golden. Set aside.
  3. Meanwhile, heat the skillet with bacon fat over medium heat. Add the pecans and toast until golden and fragrant. Season with a pinch of salt. Spoon the pecans out onto a plate lined with paper towels.
  4. Add a drizzle of olive oil, the shallots, and a pinch of salt to the skillet. Sauté for a few minutes until the shallots are caramelized and softened. Stir in the maple syrup and apple cider vinegar. Let simmer for 30 seconds or so. Transfer this mixture to a mixing bowl and let cool for a few minutes. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking to emulsify. Season with salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste (you want the vinaigrette to be very well seasoned).
  5. Add the mixed greens and arugula to a large mixing bowl. Add the roasted apples, pecans, bacon (roughly chopped), blue cheese, and raisins. Pour in the vinaigrette and toss to combine.
  6. Taste the salad and season with more salt and freshly cracked black pepper if needed. Serve immediately.

Roasted Apple Salad

9 thoughts on “Roasted Apple Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette

    1. Hi Mary! I would just omit and roast the apples with olive oil instead of the bacon fat. I’d also make sure to season the salad well, since the bacon adds a saltiness. I hope this helps! -Kayla

  1. Hi. This looks fantastic and I want to make it for Thanksgiving. How much of this salad can me made ahead? So much competition for the stove in the run up. Thanks

    1. Hi David! Here’s what you can do ahead: cook the bacon, roast the apples, toast the pecans, make the vinaigrette, crumble the blue cheese. For serving, I recommend bringing everything to room temperature before tossing it all together. You could also warm the vinaigrette slightly before tossing, especially if you’ve stored it overnight in the fridge and it’s thickened up too much. I hope you enjoy!

  2. Hi. This looks so great. How much of this salad could be done ahead? So many people competing for stove space in the rush up to eating at Thanksgiving

  3. This sounded so yummy. When I roasted apples as per recipe they were soft, and squishy. Not a preferred salad topping for me. What did I do wrong?

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