Salads with fruits and nuts transform a simple salad into a delicious mix of flavor and texture, sweet and savory. Blending the crispness of greens, the sweetness of fruit, and the crunch of nuts adds a whole new level to your picnic salads.
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The Appeal of Salads with Fruit and Nuts
Fruit and nut salads not only pack a nutritional punch with vitamins, antioxidants, and healthy fats. Their versatility shines across various occasions, transcending the seasons.
Whether a robust fall salad inspired by the season’s harvest or a fresh and light summer salad, fruit and nut salads give us more opportunities to utilize seasonal produce, offering a canvas of culinary creativity.
Tips for Balanced Salads with Fruit
Crafting the perfect fruit and nut salad begins with selecting the best greens for your base and pairing them with complementary fruits and nuts to create a balanced salad that’s not only delicious but also textually and visually appealing.
Choosing Your Greens: The greens serve as the canvas for your salad. These are some of the best greens that won’t wilt when paired with fruit:
- Spinach: Spinach offers a mildly sweet flavor and tender texture. It pairs well with robust fruits and nuts.
- Arugula: Known for its peppery bite, arugula adds a spicy kick to salads. Its bold flavor complements sweeter fruits like pear and apple.
- Mixed Greens: A blend of lettuces offers a variety of textures and flavors, from the bitterness of radicchio to the crispness of romaine. Mixed greens are versatile and can be matched with various fruits and nuts.
- Kale: Kale is not just a nutrient powerhouse. Its hearty texture and earthy flavor make it a great base for salads with sweeter fruits and rich, crunchy nuts. Kale’s robustness is especially well-suited for make-ahead salads that can be dressed ahead of time, as it holds up well without wilting.
Choosing Your Fruits: Seasonal fruits are your best bet for the freshest flavors. These are some great fruits to pair with seasonal salads:
- Summer: Berries, peaches, and cherries provide sweet and tangy notes perfect for light, refreshing salads. Melons can form the basis for a sweet and salty savory salad.
- Fall: Apples, pears, and figs offer a crisp, autumnal sweetness that pairs beautifully with hearty greens.
- Winter: Citrus fruits and pomegranates can brighten up salads with bursts of acidity and color during colder months.
- Spring: Mango, strawberries, and apricots bring a sweet and floral note to salads, heralding the return of warmer weather and beautiful spring picnics.
Tip: When selecting fruits, consider their texture and juice content. Firmer fruits hold up well in salads, while juicier fruits such as oranges can add moisture and act as a natural dressing component.
Nuts that go Well with Salads: Nuts add a satisfying crunch and a boost of healthy fats and proteins to salads. These are some nuts that work well in salads, especially with fruits:
- Walnuts: Offer a rich, earthy flavor that pairs wonderfully with apples and pears. Their robust texture enhances the salad’s depth. I use them in my roasted pumpkin salad, as they compliment the sweetness and texture of the pumpkin.
- Almonds: Provide a subtle sweetness and excellent crunch. You can add almonds to almost any salad and fruit combination, although they pair well with stone fruits and cherries.
- Pecans: Have a buttery texture and a sweet, nutty flavor, complementing tart and sweet fruits. They are particularly delicious with oranges, cranberries, and strawberries, providing a nice balance to their acidity and sweetness.
- Pine Nuts: Soft, buttery pine nuts are ideal for adding a nutty flavor to lighter salads. Pair them with tomatoes and spinach for a Mediterranean flair or with sweet berries for a subtle contrast. Be careful not to overdo it with pine nuts; the flavor can overwhelm a salad.
- Hazelnuts: Known for their distinctive flavor, hazelnuts add a rich, toasted quality to salads. They pair especially well with figs and raspberries, offering a crunchy counterpoint to these soft textures.
Tip: Toasting nuts (especially pine nuts) before adding them to your salad can enhance their flavor and add extra crunch.
Fruit and Nut Salad Recipes
This selection of salad recipes covers all the seasons, from fresh and fragrant summer salads with watermelon and pine nuts to comforting harvest salads loaded with apples and pecans.
Pear and Goat Cheese Salad With Candied Pecans
If you’re looking for easy winter salad recipes, you can’t go past a vibrant pear and goat cheese salad with candied pecans for a delicious nod to seasonal produce. This seasonal salad balances textures and flavors with sweet and salty, the crunch of maple-glazed pecans and pumpkin seeds, and a hint of chipotle chili.
Get the Pear and Goats Cheese Salad Recipe
Nectarine and Rocket Salad with Walnuts and Basil Dressing
Brighten your summer picnic spread with this Nectarine Salad. A vibrant mix of peppery arugula, sweet nectarines, mozzarella, feta and a fragrant a basil dressing. For extra crunch, choose pecans or walnuts for this salad.
Get the Nectarine Salad Recipe
Photo credit: thecinnamonjar.com
Chicken Waldorf Salad
This classy and timeless fruit and nut salad, typically made with celery, apples, walnuts, grapes, and a mayonnaise-based dressing, is traditionally served as an appetizer or light meal on a bed of lettuce. Tip: I like to use this Chicken Waldorf Salad in a sandwich.
Get the Chicken Waldorf Salad Recipe
Radicchio and Pear Salad with Hazel Nuts
The Radicchio and Pear Salad is a feast for the senses. The rich, crimson hues of bitter radicchio, paired with the sweetness of green pears and the toasted crunch of hazelnuts, create a seasonal salad that’s simply unforgettable.
Get the Radicchio and Pear Salad Recipe
Photo credit: saladswithanastasia.com
Smoked Duck, Fig & Grilled Pear Salad
Light and delicious, this salad always makes a statement. Tender slices of smoked duck breast with sweet figs and sticky grilled pears topped with salty goat's cheese and hazelnuts. A simple yet elegant salad that is easy to pre-prepare and pull together last minute.
Get the Duck, Fig and Pear Salad Recipe
Roasted Beet and Orange Salad with Walnuts
A fresh and vibrant salad with roasted beets, fresh oranges and walnuts on a bed of mixed greens. It is then brightened with an easy and refreshing orange vinaigrette and fresh mint.
Get the Roasted Beet and Orange Salad Recipe
Photo credit: https://delightfulplate.com/
Strawberry Goat Cheese Walnut Salad
This is a beautiful spring or summer salad with fresh strawberries, creamy goat cheese, red onion, candied walnuts, and baby spinach with a bright honey lime dressing.
Get the Strawberry Goat Cheese Walnut Salad Recipe
Photo credit: midwesternhomelife.com
Arugula Salad with Beets, Oranges, Walnuts, and Goat Cheese
A colorful arugula salad with pickled beets, goat cheese, oranges, walnuts and the simplest balsamic and olive oil dressing. This gorgeous salad has a lot going for it.
Get the Arugula Salad with Beets Recipe
Photo credit: flavorfulife.com
Watermelon Apple and Mint Salad with Pine Nuts
This beautiful salad feels like an ode to summer. Refreshingly light, it is a great mix of sweet and savory with sweet watermelon, crispy apple, refreshing mint, buttery pine nuts, and a savoury tamari lime dressing.
Watermelon Apple and Mint Salad Recipe
Photo credit: thedevilwearssalad.com
Mandarin Orange Salad with Pecans
This is a quick and easy salad that’s a fresh and colorful with a balanced sweet and saltiness thanks to oranges, dried cranberries, feta cheese and candied pecans.
Get the Mandarin Orange Salad Recipe
Photo credit: dinneratthezoo.com
Tropical Mango Salad with Coconut and Peanuts
A fresh summer mango salad recipe that is bursting with vibrant tropical flavours. Effortless to put together, the combination of sweet mangoes and toasted coconut flakes with a tangy lime dressing and crunchy peanuts is utterly delicious.
Get the Tropical Mango Salad Recipe
Photo credit: thedevilwearssalad.com
Kale and Green Bean Salad with Almond and Cranberry
This easy Kale and Green Bean Salad with Almond and Cranberry is bursting with flavor and texture. A beautifully vibrant salad, this is also a great make-ahead salad thanks to sturdy kale.
Get the Kale and Green Bean Salad Recipe
Photo credit: delightfulplate.com
Quinoa and Spinach Salad With Mandarins and Almonds
A healthy, vibrant salad with fresh citrus flavors. This easy Quinoa and Spinach Salad features spring onions, baby spinach, mandarin, pomegranate arils and slivered almonds on a nutritious quinoa base.
Get the Quinoa and Spinach Salad Recipe
Photo credit: itsnotcomplicatedrecipes.com
Grilled Chicken Arugula Salad with Pears and Walnuts
This simple chicken pear salad features fresh arugula, toasted walnuts, and a quick homemade lemon vinaigrette. Whip it up in minutes using grilled or rotisserie chicken.
Get the Grilled Chicken Arugula Salad Recipe
Photo credit: lifeasastrawberry.com
Chicken Apple Pecan Salad
This delicious and hearty Chicken Apple Pecan Salad is everything we love about fall. Loaded with crunch and flavor thanks to sweet crisp apple slices, tart cranberries, and crunchy pecans.
Get the Chicken Apple Pecan Salad Recipe
Photo credit: sweetteaandthyme.com
Thai Green Mango Salad with Cashews
Thai green mango salad with cashew is a flavorful and light summer salad full of bold flavors. Bringing together sour, sweet, salty, and umami, with the crunch of the crispy mangoes, this is a very impressive salad.
Get the Thai Green Mango Salad Recipe
Photo credit: simplysuwanee.com
Fall Harvest Salad with Apple Cider Vinaigrette
Another nod to the Fall harvest season. This harvest salad with apple cider vinaigrette is loaded with seasonal fruits and vegetables with crunchy pecans. Whip this bountiful salad up in under half an hour.
Get the Fall Harvest Salad Recipe
Photo credit: ihearteating.com
Pear and Rocket Salad With Parmesan and Walnuts
A classic Italian Salad using fresh pears, rocket leaves, Parmesan and walnuts. A simple all-year-round salad, finished with an easy balsamic honey dressing. It reminds us how much you can do with a few simple ingredients.
Get the Pear and Rocket Salad Recipe
Photo credit: thislittlehome.com
Beetroot and Apple Salad With Walnuts
This bright, summer salad brings deliciously tart Bramley apples together with earthy beetroot and sweet balsamic, topped with crunchy walnuts and creamy goat’s cheese.
Get the Beetroot and Apple Salad Recipe
Photo credit: amummytoo.co.uk
Strawberry Chicken Salad with Creamy Maple Dressing
This easy Strawberry Chicken Salad with Creamy Maple Dressing is incredibly delicious and very easy on the eye. Walnuts, pumpkin seeds and crisp apples step in for the crunch and strawberries and goats cheese provide the sweet and salty.
Get the Strawberry Chicken Salad Recipe
Photo credit: deliciousonadime.com
These recipes show us that salads don’t need to be restricted to vegetables. Adding fruit and nuts to our salads opens up more opportunities to embrace seasonal produce and create unique and delicious salads full of flavor and texture.
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