Grilled Pear, Goat Cheese and Walnut Salad

Thursday, March 20th, 2008

Filed Under Fruits, Pear, Soups and Salads

I am not a habitual list maker, but when things start to pile up so much that there is no way one can possibly get through it all without missing something, even I resort to making a prioritized list. The problem here is that I keep adding more to the list as soon as I strike something off it. I have barely four more days to get through them all, that is the reason I’ve been so bad in replying to comments and visiting fellow bloggers lately.

To top it all, I even have a bunch of blogging related activities I need to get off my list before I go on vacation. Main one being the Arusuvai Friendship chain, the premise of which is to send some surprise ingredients to fellow bloggers. They will in turn pass on some other surprise ingredients to other bloggers, thus creating a chain of friendship linking everyone together. My dear friend Musical sent me a bunch of stuff weeks ago, which I still haven’t put to use. The main reason being that I haven’t been cooking at home for a couple of weeks now. I unfortunately won’t be able to get to it till middle of April, but wanted to make sure that the friendship chain is not broken by me. So before I make the official Arusuvai post, I am extending the friendship to two really cool people- one I had the pleasure of meeting in person and the other I feel like I know through her writing. KayKat and Indosungod, your surprise ingredients are on their way! Hope you like’ em!

So, what does this salad got to do with the Arusuvai chain? Well, it is a virtual treat for another dear friend, who is all the way over in India. Our singing chef Raaga is hosting A Fruit A Month event in March, and she chose Pear as the theme. I have been buying pears ever since she announced the theme, it being my favorite fruit and all, but all I have done so far is to eat them before they go bad. Luckily I had a picture in my drafts of a simple pear salad, which really doesn’t require a recipe, but looks like this is all I can do for AFAM this month.

It’s been a while since I made it, so I don’t remember the measurements, but it is one of those forgiving recipes where you can use your complete creative freedom.

Method

To make the Warm Balsamic Vinaigrette, Heat a tbsp of extra virgin olive oil in a skillet. Add some minced garlic and saute on low heat till garlic turns brown. Remove from the heat and add a tbsp of balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Combine well to make a dressing.

Toss the walnuts with some olive oil and salt, and toast them on the stove or in the microwave.

Slice the pears into thin wide strips, brush them with some lemon juice and arrange on the grill or a broiler pan. Grill or broil turning once till the sides start to brown, about three minutes on each side.

Toss some mixed greens with the dressing, top with warm sliced pears, and place the goat cheese on top of the pear slices, so the cheese starts to melt from the heat of the grilled pear. Sprinkle toasted walnuts and salt and freshly ground pepper.

This is my entry for AFAM - Pear hosted by Raaga. A Fruit A Month event was started by Maheswari of Beyond the Usual.

Don’t forget Monthly Blog Patrol!I am guest hosting MBP this month. The theme for March is Mixed Drinks and the deadline is March 24th.

Check out the details here.

Comments

21 Responses to “Grilled Pear, Goat Cheese and Walnut Salad”

Raaga on March 20th, 2008 10:21 pm

Hmmm… its an old recipe, but it comes out now… which is good… will you believe that the stuff I posted for RCI was something I made months ago and the RCI Rajasthan stuff will probably be a year old when I actually post it.

It is soooooooooo the thought that counts and I think I am going to make this salad too… have so many pears at home.

Thanks Sig, great entry!!

Yeah, I knew those drafts will come handy sometime.. Glad you like the entry sweets!
Happy Cook on March 21st, 2008 12:51 am

Hi hi old or new i love this salade.
It is a real classic combo.
Enjoy you holiday.
I am also going to take a break for 2 weeks as my daughter is having her spring holidays and we’ve planned a four days visit to London.

Have a great break Happy Cook! London is one of my favorite cities, enjoy your visit!
rachel on March 21st, 2008 2:22 am

refreshing salad…must be a contrast of flavours right!

Yep, the flavors in this salad are great, simple but elegant
indosungod on March 21st, 2008 4:26 am

Sig, looking forward to the Arusuvai secret
I am not a big fan of Pears but the grilled pears might be something else altogether ( I am mad or anything DD2 insisted I add this emoticon)

I was wondering about that mad icon… Grilling pears makes them sweeter and softer… enhance the flavor so to speak…
saswati on March 21st, 2008 6:33 am

hey sig the salad looks gr8 and i am sure it must be tasting gr8 too

It did taste great Saswati! Thanks!
richa on March 21st, 2008 7:02 am

cannot go wrong with pears & walnut, d-lish!
yup, toasting walnuts in the m/w works quite well.

Yeah, I remember our conversation… depending on my mood and whether the oven is pre-heated, I alternate between stove, m/w and oven… It is all the same
Laavanya on March 21st, 2008 7:12 am

I bought pears too to make something for Raaga but didn’t get around to it. When i did search for recipe ideas using pears this salad popped up quite often.. Looks great Sig.

Thanks Laav! Yeah, the pear, walnut, goat cheese is a classic combo, for good reason… It is delicious
evolvingtastes on March 21st, 2008 7:15 am

Just the type of salad I could (and almost do) eat any day! Looks delicious.

Thanks ET! Me too… I can have these any day as well…
Uma on March 21st, 2008 9:48 am

Love it, love it, love it! That’s all I can say!

Thanks Uma!
Mansi on March 21st, 2008 12:49 pm

This looks great Sig! one of my favorite salads! in fact, I love pears more than any other fruits in salads, and goat cheese is definitely the best pairing with pears!

Yep, me too… I use pears in place of apples all the time too… My fav fruit.. The texture is made for salads I think..
Kalai on March 21st, 2008 1:24 pm

Yum, yum, yum. Goat cheese, pears, nuts, greens. You had me at hello with this one, Sig! Great entry.

Thanks Kalai!
Cynthia on March 21st, 2008 2:39 pm

Sig that is a beautiful photograph and a beautiful salad.

Thanks Cyn… I wasn’t so sure of the picture, that is why it sat in the drafts for a long time…
musy on March 21st, 2008 4:21 pm

Grilled pear and walnuts-yummy! This is one of my all time favorite salads!

Thanks musy! The salad is universally loved it seems
sra on March 21st, 2008 9:02 pm

Looks good. Though I’ve never had goat’s cheese.

I love goat cheese, stronger the better.. But the one used it this one was a very mild variety…
sunita on March 22nd, 2008 3:30 am

I love all the ingredients in there..especially the goats cheese…lovely entry.

Thanks Sunita!
Aaarti on March 22nd, 2008 5:27 am

hi Sig

have been seeing your name on Raaga’s blog.. and finally managed to squeeze in a bit of time to come over here..

Loved this recipe and also noted down some of the veg mushroom ones.. i love those mushrooms..

happy cooking
and a wonderful easter sunday

Thanks Aarti , welcome to my site Hope to see you again!
Amy on March 22nd, 2008 3:33 pm

Looks delicious Sig!

Thanks Amy!
Rina on March 26th, 2008 7:51 am

Wow!!! gr8 salad dear… Complete nurishment…Greens, nuts, fruit, cheese, and spice dressing…can’t ask for more or may be some grilled chicken cubes..
nandita on March 28th, 2008 3:04 am

Yummy!!! Even I made a pear salad for Raaga…she is going to be munching away on all that for her AFAM hosting

Missing you - dont find you on chat plus msn is not allowing me to use the old messenger, asking me to download new version if i wanna chat - tell me what to do!

HUGGGS
Susan from Food Blogga on April 3rd, 2008 12:07 pm

Mmmmm….sounds absolutely fantastic! My mom just ordered a similar salad at a restaurant here in SD. It was pears, greens, and Mexican cotija cheese with spicy nuts. Yours sounds even better!
peabody on April 8th, 2008 12:42 am

Looks like my kind of salad!