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So I know salads are not typically a Sunday thing.
But this Caramelized Brussels Sprout Salad just seemed like more of a Sunday thing.
I mean, this is not your typical salad, and to be honest, it is more of a side dish than a salad. This is a warm salad with all the fixins. There are caramelized brussels sprouts, apples, pecans, crispy bacon, blue cheese and the sweetest, savoriest caramel apple vinaigrette that can be kind of addicting.
Can you tell I am ready for the official start of fall on Tuesday? I have tried so hard these last couple weeks not to be too heavy into fall-like foods, but as of last Friday, I pretty much just gave up on that.
Falls foods are my favorite, and every year the season flies by even quicker. So I hope you are ready for apples, pumpkins, pomegranates, roasted everything and lots of sweets.
Come on, that totally makes you excited. You know it does.
Ok but anyway, I am eager to tell you about this salad because it’s another post for my favorite pasta company DeLallo. DeLallo has created a line of “salad savors” and they are the coolest thing ever.
Basically the idea is that the salad savors give you all the toppings every delicious salad needs. All that is left for you to do is add some greens, maybe a protein if you are into that, or maybe a fun dressing. It makes dinner prep SO easy and convenient.
Today I am showing you how I used the Vibrant Blue Salad Savors.
I took the pecans and dried cherries out of the DeLallo Salad Savors box and stirred them into a mix of caramelized onions and apples. Perfect for fall, right?? Then I needed a dressing, so for some reason a caramel apple vinaigrette sounded pretty darn good. I love sweet and savory flavors together and that is this salad. Last up – I took the blue cheese from the Salad Savors box and sprinkled it on top of the salad.
This is definitely a side salad, actually now that I am thinking about it, it is sort of perfect as a Thanksgiving side. I know, Tieghan shut up, it is not even October. But hey, just thinkin ahead for you and bonus that it is such an easy salad to make.
When I served this for dinner, I made it into more of a heartier salad by adding a fried egg and a side of creamy polenta. Delicious either way.
If you’ve never had caramelized brussels sprouts, now is the time to start. Plus, if you start now, you will still have all of fall + winter to eat and enjoy them. Caramelization makes everything so much better, and caramelized brussels sprouts are one of my favorites. Top them off with these DeLallo Salad Savors toppings and this caramel apple vinaigrette dressing and you’ll have a salad that everyone will love.
And how cool is the idea of Salad Savors? I love it!
*This post is sponsored by DeLallo Foods. All opinions are of course my own.
Caramelized Brussels Sprout Pecan Salad w/Bacon + Caramel Apple Vinaigrette.
Servings: 6 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 376 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 4 slices thick-cut bacon chopped (leave bacon out and swap 1 tablespoon olive oil for a vegetarian version)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 clove garlic minced or grated
- 1 pound brussels sprouts stems removed and sliced
- 1/2 a small onion chopped
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/2 a green apple chopped
- 2 honeycrisp apples thinly sliced
- 1 DeLallo Vibrant Blue SaladSavors® salad topping
Caramel Apple Vinaigrette
- 2 cups apple cider
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 of a green apple finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 4 leaves sage chopped
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet with high sides over medium-high heat and cook bacon until crispy. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Remove all but one tablespoon of bacon fat from the pan and then add 1 tablespoon olive oil, heat over high heat. Add garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add the brussels sprouts and chopped onions in a single layer and sprinkle with brown sugar and salt. Let sit 1 minute and stir. Continue to saute for another 4-5 minutes, until bright green and tender. Now add the apples and cook another 3-5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the the pecans and dried cherries from the Vibrant Blue SaladSavor toppings. Divide the salad among plates and top with Vibrant Blue SaladSavors blue cheese. Drizzle with the caramel apple vinaigrette and the crispy bacon.
Caramel Apple Vinaigrette
- Add the apple cider, brown sugar and chopped apples to a medium sauce pot and bring to a boil, boil for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the cider has reduced to about 1/2 cup and is slightly thick and syrupy. Remove from heat and add the cider vinegar and sage leaves. Pour the mixture into a food processor or blender and add the olive oil, pinch of cayenne, salt and pepper. Pulse the vinaigrette a few time to mince the apples (do not puree the apples). Taste and season with more salt and pepper if desired. Keep the dressing in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Oh and another idea – roast a chicken today, make this salad, and Sunday dinner is done. Bonus, the house will smell all kinds of amazing!
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe! However I’m not a big fan of blue cheese, any suggestions for another cheese to swap in?
Hey Alexa,
Goat cheese would be great to use in place of the blue cheese. I hope you enjoy this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
This recipe deserves 6 stars. This was SO good! No idea what that salad mix stuff is, but I read the reviews and just added blue cheese, pecans and raisins because that’s what I had. I also added chicken just cooked up on the stove in residual bacon grease. And of course….more bacon! This was SO delicious and I love the idea of a warm salad!
Hey Autumn! Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! ? xTieghan
This was so good. Made it for a dinner party (first course before your brown butter pesto/butternut squash ravioli) and everyone loved it. Some were skeptical at first, given the fact that it’s a ‘salad’ but warm and brussel sprouts paired with apples, but everyone loved it. Didn’t use the salad pack–used dried cranberries and then toasted some pecans separately. Definitely could use this as a side dish as well.
Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, so glad to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Hi Teighan, I want to make this to take to Friendsgiving this weekend, however I don’t think Delallo sells the “saladsavors” any more as I can’t find them on their website. Would you just sub some chopped pecans and blue cheese or am I missing another topping? Looks great! Thanks for your help!
Hey Emily! Yes, all you need to add is toasted pecans and blue cheese. YUM! That will be so good! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Hello! This salad looks delicious! I don’t think I can find the salad toppers because they are not on the DeLallo website. (I’m not a fan of blue cheese anyway). Can you please give approximate quantity of dried cherries and pecans? Thank you!
HI! I would use 1/2 cup dried cherries and pecans. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
This would go good with farro!
Thank you Judy!
What is 1 DeLallo Vibrant Blue SaladSavors® salad topping? We don’t have that here?
Hey Judy! You can use 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese, 1/2 cup dried cranberries, and 1/2 cup chopped pecans in place of the salad saver. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much and happy Thanksgiving! xTieghan
If you could provide nutritional info, that would be so great! This site would allow you to embed it.
Very good recipe!
https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Hi Heather! I do not calculate the nutritional information for my recipes, so sorry about this! I just try to use more natural ingredients.
Looks divine! If I cant find salad savers, could I simply use pecans, blue cheese crumbles and dried tart cherries and if so what would the measurements be? Thank you!
Hi Gina! Yes, that works just as well. Let me know if you have questions. Hope you love this. Thank you! 🙂
this vinaigrette is mind blowing cool creative. love love love 🙂
My family loved this! I grilled some chicken and added it on top and it was delicious. Thank you!
Looks delicious! If I make this a day in advance, what would be the best way to reheat it to keep the flavors and textures intact?
Hey Anna!! I would reheat it in the oven at 350 or on the stove top over a low heat and if you want the dressing warm, just microwave it for 15 seconds. Hope you love this!!
It made this salad tonight. So good! I omitted the sugar and it still tasted great! The apples made it sweet enough so that helped. I’m going to make this for Thanksgiving. Thanks for your recipe. Your very talented.
So happy you loved it! Thank you!
Waw! There are so many things I love combined in this recipe! such a Great combination!
Thank you!