The easiest, yet most impressive salad you’ll be serving forever more

Trine Jensen-Burke

When it comes to entertaining guests, I am always on the hunt for recipes that are relatively easy to throw together, yet will both look impressive and taste delish.

I recently came across this salad recipe, and thinking it sounded all sorts of delicious, I made it for dinner the other day – and guys – it was SO good.

Easily one of the best salads I have ever eaten, in fact, which is made even more impressive by the fact that the salad was almost ridiculously easy to throw together.

Seriously – if you will be welcoming dinner guests over the holiday season, this salad is bound to have everyone ask you for the recipe:

Roasted sweet potato, pear and pomegranate spinach salad with creamy goat cheese, toasted pecans and a tangy balsamic dressing

Ingredients

For the sweet potatoes:
2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into ½ cubes
1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar (or coconut sugar or maple syrup)
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Freshly ground salt and pepper
For the pecans:
½ cup pecans
For the salad:
2 (6 ounce) bags organic spinach (about 8-10 cups spinach)
3/4 cup pomegranate seeds, from 1 pomegranate
2 medium ripe bartlett pears, thinly sliced
½ cup goat cheese (or can use feta)
For the dressing:
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon honey
½ teaspoon dijon mustard
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celcius. In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, brown sugar, minced garlic, cinnamon and cayenne. Place the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and pour mixture over the top. Season with salt and pepper and toss well to coat. Roast for 20-30 minutes until sweet potatoes are fork-tender, tossing a bit halfway through. They should get a little crispy on the edges.
While the sweet potatoes are cooking, you can toast the pecans on the stovetop: Add pecans to a pan and place over medium heat, stirring occasionally for 2-5 minutes until pecans are fragrant and slightly golden brown on edges. Remove from heat and transfer to a cutting board. After a few minutes, chop the pecans into big pieces. Set aside.
In a mason jar or small bowl, add all of the dressing ingredients. Shake or mix well to combine. Taste and add additional salt/pepper, if necessary.
In a large bowl, add the spinach, pomegranate seeds, pear slices, and cooked sweet potatoes. Top with toasted pecans and goat cheese crumbles. Drizzle with desired amount of dressing, then toss to coat. Add to bowls and serve with extra pecans and goat cheese, if desired.

(Recipe and images via Ambitious Kitchen)