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Best Spinach Salad with Apple, Pecans and Gorgonzola Cheese

This is the best Spinach Salad recipe with apples, candied pecans, pomegranate and gorgonzola cheese! It’s drizzled with a champagne vinaigrette, making it fancy enough to serve as a holiday side dish. Plus it only takes 5 minutes to make! 

Looking for more salad recipe ideas? A few other must try salads are my Avocado Strawberry Spinach Salad with a Honey Mustard Dressing or my Detox Berry Quinoa Spinach Salad!

The Best Spinach Salad Recipe with Apples

When it comes to side dishes on our holiday table, salads are a must! After all, you are stuffing your face with turkey, gravy, all the starches and sugary casseroles so let’s make sure we get some greens too! You know, to balance things out. 

These easy spinach salad comes together in 5 minutes and is filled with (my favorite) honey crisp apples, candied pecans, mandarin oranges, sliced red onion, juicy pomegranates, gorgonzola cheese and then drizzled with a light champagne vinaigrette. You’ll absolutely love it and so will your guests!

best spinach salad with apple pecans

Is Spinach Good for You?

Yes! It has lots of nutrients in it to restore energy, improve vitality and encourage overall health! Namely because it is rich in Iron, Vitamin K, Vitamin C, Vitamin A and folate which helps with gut health. All in all spinach is a great leafy green to have daily!

How Many Calories Does Spinach Salad Have?

Let’s start with the basics. Spinach is a leafy green loaded with fiber and other nutrients but low in calories. In fact, one cup of spinach has only 7 calories. That being said, the more “extras” you add to the spinach salad the more the calories increase. Also keep in mind the calories for the dressing. 

best spinach salad with apple pecans and gorgonzola cheese on a plate

How Do You Clean and Store Spinach for Salad?

The best way to clean spinach is to add it to a large bowl or sink of cold water, using your hands swish the spinach around. Then let the spinach sit for a minute in the water and lift into a colander to drain. Try tasting the spinach to see if you taste and grit, if you do wash the leaves again. Once you’re finished washing the spinach. Store spinach in an air tight containers wrapped in paper towels. The spinach should last for up to 10 days is stored this way.

How to Make Spinach Salad?

  1. Make Homemade Dressing: To a small bowl add garlic clove, champagne vinegar, olive oil, fresh thyme, mustard, honey and salt. Whisk together until combined. Set aside.
  2. To a large salad bowl add spinach, honeycrisp apple slices, red onion slices, mandarin oranges, pecans, pomegranate seeds and gorgonzola.
  3. Drizzle dressing over the salad and gently toss to coat everything.
  4. Serve.
dressing being poured on the best spinach salad with apples

I’ll be honest. As a family, we’ve made a Mandarin Orange Cranberry Kale Salad for years. Like it’s gonna be hard to break the tradition. But sometimes, traditions need to be broken to start new traditions, and this is one of those cases. 

Not only will everyone absolutely love all the flavors packed into this easy spinach salad but YOU will love how fast it comes together. You can’t beat a 5 minute recipe! 

Bon Appetit friends!

How to Turn Your Spinach Salad into a Main Dish

You can turn your spinach salad into a filling dinner by adding toppings like:

close up best spinach salad with apple pecan and gorgonzola cheese on a plate with a spoon

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best spinach salad with apple pecans

Best Spinach Salad with Apple, Pecans and Gorgonzola Cheese

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  • Author: Krista
  • Prep Time: 5 min
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Yield: 810 1x
  • Category: Salad
  • Method: No Bake
  • Cuisine: American

Description

This is the best Spinach Salad recipe with apples, candied pecans, pomegranate and gorgonzola cheese! It’s drizzled with a champagne vinaigrette, making it fancy enough to serve as a holiday side dish. Plus it only takes 5 minutes to make!


Ingredients

Scale

Spinach Salad

  • 4 cups baby spianach
  • 1 honeycrisp apple, sliced
  • 1/4 cup sliced red onion
  • 1/4 cup mandarin orange
  • 1/4 cup candied pecans
  • 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
  • 1/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese

Champagne Dressing:

  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1/4 cup champagne vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • salt

Instructions

  1. To a small bowl add garlic clove, champagne vinegar, olive oil, fresh thyme, mustard, honey and salt. Whisk together until combined. Set aside.
  2. To a large salad bowl add spinach, honeycrisp apple, red onion, mandarin orange, pecans, pomegranate seeds and gorgonzola.
  3. Drizzle dressing over the salad and gently toss to coat everything.
  4. Serve.


Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/2 cup
  • Calories: 98
  • Sugar: 4 g
  • Sodium: 114 mg
  • Fat: 8 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1 g
  • Carbohydrates: 6 g
  • Fiber: 1 g
  • Protein: 2 g
  • Cholesterol: 3 mg

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Want More Holiday Side Salad Recipes?

Cranberry Apple Brussel Sprout Salad

Healthy Cranberry Apple Brussel Sprout Salad

Harvest Roasted Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad

harvest roasted butternut squash quinoa salad

Pomegranate Goat Cheese Candied Pecan Arugula Salad

pomegranate goat cheese candied pecan arugula salad
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