Recipe: $9.36 | Per Serving: $2.34 | Yield: 4 | Jump to Recipe
Is the name a bit much? Whenever I make salads, I just want to cram all the ingredients into the title so you don't miss a single one when you're thinking about making the recipe. This filling vegetarian salad is made with lightly toasted pecans (or walnuts), dried cherries, tangy goat cheese, and a lemon-honey vinaigrette. And it is so. so. good.
I have been craving lentil salad lately, and although I'm in love with this Lentil-Bruschetta Salad, I was looking for something a little less summery. Although the only thing in this salad beckoning towards fall would be the toasted pecans and the dried cherries, I feel that this is an excellent transition salad considering the summer/fall/summer season we've been experiencing lately in Baltimore. (Do all food bloggers talk about the weather this much or is it just me?)
Also, side note, does anyone else just love love lentils? I can't believe I never ate them growing up. My mom was pretty anti-bean, so we never ate beans of any kind - and they're one of my favorite foods now! Lentils are especially awesome - they're really versatile and cook in like 15 minutes.
Vegetarian: Yep! And vegan if you skip the goat cheese and replace the honey in the dressing with maple syrup.
Paleo: Nope! Lentils and goat cheese are decidedly not Paleo. You could skip them both and top the salad with a protein of your choice to get something sort of similar. Or, if you're open to sprouted legumes, use sprouted lentils in this salad.
Lentil Salad with Goat Cheese, Pecans, and Lemon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
For the Dressing:
- 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoon honey
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
For the Salad:
- 3 cups cooked lentils 1 from dry
- ⅓ cup red onion minced
- ⅓ cup dried cherries chopped
- 2 ounces soft goat cheese or feta
- ⅓ cup toasted pecan or walnut pieces
- 8 cups salad greens 2 cups per serving
Instructions
- For the Dressing: Combine lemon juice, olive oil, honey, and salt in a jar and shake-shake-shake until well combined.
- For the Salad: Cook lentils by bringing 1 cup dry lentils and 3 cups water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until water is absorbed and lentils are soft but slightly al dente - about 15 minutes.
- To toast nuts, add them to a dry skillet and toast over low heat for 2-5 minutes, until fragrant and warm.
- Combine the lentils, red onion, cherries, and about ⅔rds of the dressing and stir well. You can choose to stir in some of the goat cheese to coat the lentils, or you can crumble it all on top. Top with the pecans or walnuts and any remaining goat cheese. Serve over salad greens - mesclun or spinach - and enjoy!
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