This light Pear and Pecan Arugula Salad with Sparkling Cranberry Vinaigrette is packed with sweet and salty flavors with a homemade vinaigrette dressing made with DRY Sparkling Cranberry! Add bosc pears, pecans, cranberries and feta?to a bed of arugula salad for a light salad that is sure to impress!
I was given a set of bottles from DRY Sparkling to sample and create a recipe pairing with! Thank you for supporting the brands that support Joyfully Mad.?
Salads are a regular occurrence for dinner these days. I didn't use to be a huge fan of salads but after living with my parents for a year and a half and having salads almost every night, they're definitely going to stick around our home once we move. Salads like this one are my go to. Light, sweet and salty!?
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About a month ago, I was given the chance to sample brand new flavors from DRY Sparkling.?DRY Sparkling creates beautifully refreshing, culinary-inspired sodas. When I got the bottles and tried their new flavors Cranberry and Ginger, I just had to use them to make a homemade salad dressing. It's ironic that I love making homemade dressings so much, when I haven't been a salad fan for all that long, but I can't help it!?
This sparkling soda was the perfect addition to the salad dressing adding just a hint of sweetness that paired perfectly with the ingredients in the pear and pecan arugula salad. Greyson was totally into the pears, too! Bosc pears are really fun to use because they?stay ripe and are almost crispy to bite in to. Adding the pears and the salted macadamia nuts gave this salad so much variety in texture and I just wanted to keep eating it!
I have a slight obsession with feta and goat cheese so any salad that we have pretty much requires one of the two of them. Originally when I was testing this recipe, I was going to use goat cheese, but I opted for feta because I really wanted to balance the sweet and salty combination in the salad. This Pear and Pecan Arugula Salad with Sparkling Cranberry Vinaigrette does just that by having a great balance between all of the sweet and salty flavors in one salad.
If this recipe isn't enough of a treat, there's more! I've joined with a handful of other bloggers to bring you a slew of recipes perfectly paired with DRY Sparkling's limited edition flavors for the holidays! Amber from Loves Food, Loves to Eat put this entire collaboration together and is sharing a full round up of the recipe pairings on her blog today so be sure to check those out!
Pear and Pecan Arugula Salad with Sparkling Cranberry Vinaigrette
This pear and pecan arugula salad provides a sweet and salty that is the perfect dinner-time pairing.
Ingredients
- 12 oz of arugula
- 1 bosc pear, sliced
- ½ cup cranberries
- ½ cup salted macadamia nuts
- ½ cup feta cheese
Sparkling Cranberry Vinaigrette
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon DRY Sparkling Cranberry
- 1 tablespoon honey
- Dash of salt and pepper
Instructions
- Mix together ingredients for dressing in a mason jar or dressing shaker.
- Gently toss together salad ingredients and dressing in a salad bowl.
- Serve immediately.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 229Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 17mgSodium: 233mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 4gSugar: 11gProtein: 6g
So, if you're looking for something sweet to pair with your holiday meals this year, DRY Sparkling is a must! This Pear and Pecan Arugula Salad with Sparkling Cranberry Vinaigrette is the perfect pairing for a big holiday meal or a casual one, too. It's one of our new favorites, for sure!
fwiwJeannie says
I love making salad with seasonal fruits. I usually buy a fruity dressing so I'm quite excited to try making your version!
Madison Wetherill says
Ever since I started making my own salad dressings, I haven't been able to go back to store bought!
Kelsey @ Appeasing a Food Geek says
I love the idea of this fall salad--and adding DRY to the dressing is genius! It was fun to celebrate the #HolidayPairingParty with you! xoxo
Madison Wetherill says
Thanks Kelsey! It gave it just a bit of "spiciness" from the bubbles ๐