Sweet & Savoury Maple Spring Salad {Recipe}

Each year at the cottage with my inlaws on Saint Joseph Island, we brunch at Gilbertson's Pancake House, a lovely seasonal restaurant which showcases the family's tasty maple products. I usually load up on traditional breakfast fare such as sausage, pancakes and french toast, but this year wanted to go for something a little lighter so tried the maple spring salad with chicken, featuring their in-house sweet & savoury maple dressing. It was heavenly. I almost bought a bottle of the dressing to take home, but it was pricey and I figured hey - it can't be that hard to make! Especially since the ingredients were listed on the back of the bottle. Unfortunately, I made the dubious decision to commit the list to memory, and then on the ride home realized I'd forgotten at least a few items. Oops. But when it came time to recreating the dish at home, I ended up doing a pretty good job. (Well, at least I think so. I hope you'll agree!)

This salad meets all the key requirements to earn a spot on the regular rotation in our household. It's delicious, super-quick to make, versatile and it's made with clean ingredients. It *is* indulgent, however, so how healthy it ultimately is may be for up discussion. ;)


Sweet & Savoury Maple Spring Salad

Prep Time: 6-7 minutes
Yield: 1 single-serve bowl of salad (multiply the ingredients accordingly for additional servings)

Ingredients - Salad:

• 1/4 pear
• 1/4 apple
• 3 slices high-quality old cheddar cheese, cut in small pieces
• 20(ish) pecans, lightly toasted
• A few thin slices of red onion (optional - I didn't include these in the version above)
• Handful of spring mix

Ingredients - Maple Dressing:

• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 pinch of celtic sea salt
• Pepper to taste

Steps:

• Layer salad ingredients in a bowl starting with spring mix
• Whisk together maple dressing ingredients and pour evenly on top of salad
• Enjoy!