Roasted Apple, Pecan and Chicken Spinach Salad.
The apple obsession continues!
This time it’s a super simple dish that you can throw together in no time. And it includes cucumbers. Yes, cucumbers. Cucumbers are a veggie that have never made an appearance here because they used to make me want to vomit.
Then I bought some sweet cucumbers from Trader Joe’s and juiced them with an apple. And the juice was full of deliciousness. So I attempted to add these cucumbers in said salad. They were okay. I enjoyed them most when the bite was paired with the apple or pecans. No surprise there, right? I wonder if a day will come when I actually dump chocolate sauce on vegetables.
All this means is that you will love the cucumbers on the salad. I am not normal.
You must try this combo! I have waxed poetic about how I am a fan of sweet and savory mixes in the same dish, and this salad doesn’t disappoint. Sweet apples and crunchy pecans definitely makes this salad much easier for me to choke down burst with flavor.
Roasted Apple, Pecan and Chicken Spinach Salad
2 cups baby spinch
1/4 cup cucumber slices, chopped
1 apple, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ounce pecans
3 ounces grilled chicken
Preheat oven to 425.
Chop apple, sprinkle with cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Roast for 15 minutes, or until caramelized.
Combine spinach, chicken, pecans and apples together. Top with dressing.
Apple Cider Dressing
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar (I used red apple)
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients together and whisk well. If dressing is too sweet, add a pinch of sugar. I like my dressings very tart!
What fall flavors are you loving in a salad these days? I love me some apple. You know it’s really just a vehicle to get the spinach in my belly.
Note: If you want to try the Fustini’s vinegar that I’ve been raving about, you can enter the code howsweet10 and receive 10% off your order!
78 Comments on “Roasted Apple, Pecan and Chicken Spinach Salad.”
Apples in a salad are such a sweet treat. This salad looks perfect in every way.
Fab. Love fruit on top of salad. I think I’ve said this before…it just adds such a great sweetness to the mix.
Apple cider dressing? YUM!
Looks amazing (and healthy too). Love it!
Great photos Jessica. This is definitely a salad I could sink my teeth into.
You know, I’m not a huge cucumber fan either– and I LOVE my veggies. But I bet they’d be great in a salad like this– great crunch!
Incredible pics! Love the sweet & savory combo!
Yum yum yummmm! I think fall themed salads are one of my favorite things! We’ve been loving pears and dried cranberries on ours lately :)
Great looking salad! Did you get a new camera or something? Your pictures are great!
Thank you!
No I didn’t – I got one back in July, but not since then!
i’m making pumpkin coffee cake as we speak…mmmmmm…never get tired of pumpkin, and apples are right up there with it!
Mmm, this looks fantastic- and beautiful photos!
xo
Kris
I recently posted about my favorite autumn salad! :) Mine has figs, blue cheese, and butternut. By the way, I’m definitely going to try that pumpkin pie parfait! The graham cracker crumbs part is genius!
fruit, cheese and nuts definitely all make salads better:-) the dressing sounds perfect for a fall salad
Love that you roasted the apples for this salad-it makes it kinda fall huh. The cider dressing sounds great too. Glad to see you are digging your cukes!
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Mmm I love apples in salads! This one looks amazing..I wonder how it would be with a little bacon around there ;)
-Amalia
http://buttersweetmelody.wordpress.com
I think it would be so awesome with bacon! Unfortunately I am out of it at the moment… it’s a sin!
I have been loving roasted beets, goat cheese and chicken on spinach salads!
I just made a fall salad last night! I am lovin’ apples lately. I just can’t get enough of them, especially Honeycrisp. YUM :)
That salad looks delicious!
What a lovely combination of flavors, Jessica! I really must order some of these vinegars. Everything you have made with them looks amazing! :-)
One of my favorite salad combos! Good with bacon ;)
I was just saying that I haven’t made a salad in far too long! This is a perfect fall salad for a quick weeknight meal. Love.
I’ve been putting roasted squash on top of my salads recently! I’m just a smidge bit squash obsessed
yum…this is my favorite kind of salad. Love spinach, Pecans, Apples!! The addition of gorgonzola or goat cheese would put this salad over the top!
I love the surprise of sweet apples in my salads. This sounds great. I love the addition of the pecans, too!
I think this dressing looks awesome. I’d love to try it. I am weird about salad dressing. I haven’t made one myself that I actually like…this may be a winner though!
I am very weird about salad dressing too. I really only like tart vinegars as dressing. There isn’t a dressing out there that I love. I prefer homemade where I can control the flavors!
I fully support your apple obsession because I have been loving all of the apple recipes lately! I love simple salads that are big on flavor- especially ones with fruit in them! Can’t wait to try this one out :)
I love fruit in salads — apples or pears just give a nice texture and flavor. The apple cider dressing sounds great as well.
I agree with whoever commented that this salad could use some bacon — that would take it over the edge :)
i adore apples on salad so much
I am pretty sure that I would eat all of those apples before they made it to my salad plate.
Sounds delicious. Apples on salad are just so good.
This salad sounds like a perfect lunch! We received both cucumbers AND apples in our CSA this week so it’s definitely going to make an appearance!
So many veggies lately – I can hardly believe my eyes! I love veggies though so I am not complaining. I also love sweet and savory. I think this salad would be great topped with some Gorgonzola. Yum.
I love fruit in salads! One of my favorite combos is pears, apples, strawberries, and then avocado with poppyseed dressing. So good!! Yours looks pretty much amazing, though. Such a collection of fall flavors :D
Red apple balsamic? That sounds heavenly!
Yummmmmm…..I love all fall flavors- but PUMPKIN has always been #1 in my book. I’m breaking out the ice cream maker tonight for some Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream!
I love the flavors in this salad!!
Yum this salad looks delish!
So so so pretty with the green in the background. Sounds like a great salad too!
I love fruit in salads especially pears. I adore fall.
My favorite salad is a blue cheese, walnut and pear salad from Nordstrom Cafe. It is so full of flavor and actually makes me want to eat salad (which hardly ever happens). This one looks like it could fall into the same category though!
When getting the cartoon image I used in today’s post I found one that said “I eat my vegetables. They’re still vegetables with chocolate syrup so it counts!” How perfect for you…and some days me too. ;)
I’ve said it before, but salads have to have nuts, fruit, and cheese for me to LOVE them. So your salads always speak to me.
This looks like a great recipe!
Beautiful photos!
Roasted apples — yum! I have been craving some form of roasted butternut squash with apples lately. This post just pushed me over the edge — thanks! — I am making it this weekend. Toasted pecans have been on the brain too…maybe that will go well with the b.nut & apples.
Heck I say go on with the apple theme, it is the season after all! Ah memories of apple picking. I’m favoriting this post for the salad for later!
What a yummy salad! And that apple cider dressing sounds delicious!
I’m going apple picking this weekend and cannot wait to make anything and everything APPLE!
Oooh, yummy fall salad! One question… Where’s the bacon? LOL, my BF has to have bacon on his salads, no other way :)
Love it!
Did you see the apple nachos in the new taste of home? They totally reminded me of you.
wow, this looks sooooo good. I want some big time!!!
I’m so excited about this salad! In the dressing…did you mean apple cider dressing or vinegar? If dressing…I’ve never seen that before! Where can I get some?
Yes! So sorry about that – fixed it!