Bring a bright and smoky bite to your Autumn green salads by hitting the grill.
This is my favorite Thanksgiving salad but it would also be a perfect side dish at any gathering. Autumn is apple time, and apples are great on a salad. Grilling them just adds excitement. You can just slice them and grill them, but give them a little butter and, well, oh my….
You can prepare this recipe well in advance and assemble it at the last minute.
Grilled Apple Salad Recipe
Rate this RecipeThis Autumn green salad with grilled apples recipe is certain to be a hit at Thanksgiving or any backyard get together. This salad can be prepared ahead of time and assembled just before serving, making this a convenient additional dish.
Ingredients
Method
- Prep. Put all the dressing ingredients in a bowl, and whisk them together. Put the dressing in a cruet or jar with a lid so you can shake it well and serve it on the side. I never dress salads in advance. They get soggy waiting for dinner, and some folks like lots of dressing while others prefer less.
- Assemble the salad by laying down the bed of greens on individual plates. Top with the cheese. Keep chilled in the fridge.
- Melt the butter in a pan or in a bowl in the microwave. Slice the apples into quarters, cut out the core and stems, and then cut the quarters in half again. Leave the skins on and toss them into the butter immediately before grilling so they can brown. Sprinkle lightly with salt, and mix until the apples are coated with butter.
- Fire up. Preheat your grill to medium hot.
- Cook. Grill the apples briefly over direct heat, about 3 minutes per side, until they have golden grill marks. Don’t let them blacken. Remove them and set them aside. You can let them sit around at room temp for an hour to room temp.
- Now we will heat and brown the nuts slightly to increase their flavor. Put the nuts in a dry frying pan on medium heat. Stand there and watch them for a minute or two and then shake the pan so the nuts flip over more or less. When they start to darken and get fragrant, dump them into a bowl. Get them out of the pan so they don’t burn from the residual heat in the pan.
- Serve. When it is time to serve, put the warm apples on the cold salad. Sprinkle the nuts on the salad and serve with the dressing on the side.
Notes
About the oil. Go for a neutral oil, like canola. Olive oil is too strong for this dressing.
About the apples. Use a juicy, firm, crunchy red apple like Braeburn, Fuji, or Gala. Macintosh apples are too mushy for this recipe.
About the apple juice. I use small amounts of apple juice in a lot of recipes, so I just keep on hand those little juice boxes that can be stored at room temp. But in autumn you can usually find fresh apple juice, the cloudy brown stuff that packs waaaay more flavor.
About the vinegar. If you don’t have cider vinegar, you can substitute rice vinegar, or white wine vinegar. If you must use distilled vinegar, use 2 tablespoons with 1 tablespoon of water.
About the salt. Remember, kosher salt is half the concentration of table salt so if you use table salt, use half as much. Click here to read more about salt and how it works.
Optional. Fresh seedless grapes are baubles of sugar in October. Add 8-10 per person. If you prefer, California Cuties, tiny little seedless sweet citrus fruits that break easily into sections are a great addition to this salad. They come into season in November. Get one per person and peel it and break it into sections.
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