Pear and Roquefort salad with poppy seed dressing
20 min
Pears and creamy blue cheese are natural partners in this light and easy salad. Poppy seeds and crunchy toasted pecans add extra interest and mineral value.
Maggie Pannell
1 person made this
Ingredients
Serves: 4
- 1 celery stick
- 3 ripe dessert pears (preferably red or pink-flushed)
- 1 head of chicory, separated into leaves
- 50g lamb's lettuce
- 25g pecan nuts (or walnuts), lightly toasted
- 100g Roquefort cheese
- 4 slices walnut bread, toasted
- POPPY SEED DRESSING
- 2 tbsp walnut oil
- 1 tbsp sherry or balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp clear honey
- 2 tsp poppy seeds
Method
Prep:20min ›
Ready in:20min
- First make the dressing by placing all the ingredients in a screw-topped jar and shaking until well combined. As the Roquefort is quite salty, there is no need to add any salt.
- Cut the celery into 5cm lengths, then slice again lengthways into fine strips.
- Core and thinly slice the pears lengthways and place in a large bowl with the chicory leaves, lamb's lettuce, pecan nuts and celery. Add the dressing and toss well to coat evenly. Crumble the Roquefort over the salad.
- Place a slice of the toasted walnut bread on each plate and pile the salad evenly over the top. Serve immediately.
variations
*Other blue cheeses would also work well, such as Stilton or Danish Blue. For a lower-fat alternative, try Feta cheese. *For a more tropical flavour, you could replace the pears with 2 sliced mangoes. *For a lighter-flavoured dressing, replace half the walnut oil with a light olive or sunflower oil.
