Winter salad with spiced pecans, pears and Devon Blue

Salads

Winter salad with spiced pecans, pears and Devon Blue

Name: Winter salad with spiced pecans, pears and Devon Blue
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4

Serves 4 20 min

The spiced pecans are so delicious on their own that you'll have to guard them or they will disappear before you have a chance to serve the salad. You could always give up and serve them pecans own with drinks – but the salad's worth persevering with! If you can't get Devon Blue, Gorgonzola or dolce latte make good substitutes.

Cook's notes

For a basic vinaigrette, mix together 240ml sunflower oil, 4 tbsp good-quality balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar, ½ garlic clove, crushed to a paste with a little salt, 1 tbsp Dijon mustard

Ingredients

75g pecan nuts
pinch cayenne pepper
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
dash Tabasco sauce
½ tsp salt
300g mixed winter salad leaves
3 ripe pears, peeled, cored and sliced
3 tbsp basic vinaigrette
75g Devon Blue cheese, crumbled

Method

Prep time: 10 min

Cooking time: 10 min

Step 1
Preheat oven to 200°C/Gas 6.
Step 2
In a small bowl, mix the pecans with the cayenne pepper, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and salt. Scatter them over a baking tray and bake in the oven for 5-6 minutes until lightly toasted. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
Step 3
Wash and dry the salad leaves and set aside.
Step 4
Put the pears and salad leaves in a bowl and toss with the dressing. Divide between 4 plates, scatter over the blue cheese and pecan nuts and serve.