READY IN 10 mins

Deliciously Sweet Salad with Maple, Nuts, Seeds, Blueberries, and Goat Cheese

Read Reviews (35)

"My mom began making this salad a few years ago and, as soon as I tried it, I just had to get the recipe. This is my version, but can be varied in many different ways because it's all about the dressing! So simple, yet so delicious that you are sure to get requests for the recipe whenever you make it! You can use pecans, almonds, or pine nuts in place of the walnuts." — Monica

Directions

Toss the romaine lettuce, blueberries, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, walnut pieces, feta cheese, and goat cheese in a large bowl. Pour the vinegar, syrup, and grapeseed oil over the salad one at a time; toss until evenly coated. Season with salt.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 10 mins
READY IN 10 mins

Reviews More Reviews

Most Helpful Positive Review

Jul 30, 2012

We liked this very much, even the husband, who isn't very fond of vegetables in general and NEW ways of serving vegetables in particular. (He actually could not I.D. the blueberries at first--he was pushing them off to the side until I asked him about it--thought they were black olives!). I did make a few changes based on necessity. *Resized the recipe to 10 so that I could use up 1 entire bag of romaine (which if you're curious, yields 8 cups of lettuce if you dont squish it down). *Used dried mixed berries instead of just dried cranberries. *Used less blueberries than called for and extra dried berries--this was a choice based on price, because I used fresh. I think I COULD have bought frozen blueberries, thawed & drained them though, because I don't really care if they stain my salad blue. *Used all low-fat feta & no goat cheese. None of the above changes make any real difference overall. Except maybe the feta or sunflower seeds--you need one or both of those to cut the sweetness. The real changes I made were in the dressing. *Used RED balsamic vinegar instead of WHITE because it's what I had. *Used pancake syrup instead of real maple because it's what I had. *Used olive oil instead of grapeseed oil because I couldn't find it at the grocery store. ~It was still tasty even with these substitutions. I mixed my dressing separately from my salad because the salad gets re-bagged and eaten all week and you can't do that with dressing all over it.

—JARRIE

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Most Helpful Critical Review

Jun 16, 2011

This dressing curdled in the fridge after around a week. It was horribly disappointing, especially considering the price of maple syrup. Make it in small quantities so it isn't in the fridge for more than a day. Or, skip the feta and use a drizzle of lemon juice as your only dressing. The salad combination is quite good. The dressing seems too sweet. Perhaps if the maple syrup were halved and some of the balsamic switched out for white vinegar I would like it better.

—Call Me Alice

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45 Ratings

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Mar 02, 2009

I have made this a few times now, but forgot to review. A couple of times I did not have the goat cheese or Feta and I made anyway. I used Monterey Jack instead. Was still excellent! Thank you, Monica, for a fresh, unique,and light salad that pairs well with almost any meat and vegetables or as a terrific lunch. Pretty presentation too, for company, if you get plenty of the dark green Romaine too, in it.

—somethingdifferentagain?!

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Jun 03, 2009

This recipe is fantastic. The only changes I made, and they didn't really alter the recipe, were that I used raspberries instead of blueberries b/c I don't really care for blueberries, and I didn't use goat cheese but I did use the feta. Oh, and I used pecans instead of walnuts. I did follow the dressing recipe exactly. I really do think the grapeseed oil makes a difference, if you can find it. It's not as strong of a flavor as olive oil. And use real maple syrup if you can too. I'm sure it would still be good with substitutions but definitely best if you follow the recipe.

—SAHMCOOK

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Aug 27, 2010

Loved it! Used regular balsamic (had it), pancake syrup (had it), olive oil (you guessed it) & dressing was fantastic! Only thing I might do next time that would improve an already faultless salad might be to lightly toast the nuts.

—Ron

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Jun 23, 2010

Yummmy!! A crowd favorite at the bbq, so easy and quick. I used all ingredients, except traded pecans for walnuts. The dressing is simple but fantastic, try it the way it's listed. I bought extra ingredients, and made it a second day, added chopped cooked chicken breast, and had a wonderful salad for dinner.

—lisadawley

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Jul 06, 2009

I have been looking for fantastic vinaigrette for a goat cheese salad and this one is it!! Absolutely delicious, and so easy too; an unexpected bonus. Thanks so much for this fabulous recipe!

—JQ

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Mar 27, 2009

This was sensational! I didn't have any sunflower seeds. I used olive oil instead of grapeseed. This was sweet but not overly so as the balsamic vinegar balances it out. My husband wouldn't even try it, he said, "it smells like vinegar". I loved this salad. Thanks, this was simply divine.

—~TxCin~ILove2Ck

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Nutrition

Calories
327 kcal
16%

Carbohydrates
27.4 g
9%

Cholesterol
15 mg
5%

Fat
23.4 g
36%

Fiber
2.2 g
9%

Protein
5.1 g
10%

Sodium
256 mg
10%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Deliciously Sweet Salad with Maple, Nuts, Seeds, Blueberries, and Goat Cheese

Serving Size: 1/4 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount Per Serving
** Calories: 327
** Calories from Fat: 210

% Daily Value *
** Total Fat 23.4g 36 %
** Saturated Fat 5g 25 %
** Cholesterol 15mg 5 %
** Sodium 256mg 10 %
** Potassium 223mg 6 %
** Total Carbohydrates 27.4g 9 %
** Dietary Fiber 2.2g 9 %
** Protein 5.1g 10 %
** Sugars 21.9g
** Vitamin A 52 %
** Vitamin C 20 %
** Calcium 14 %
** Iron 12 %
** Thiamin 10 %
** Niacin 11 %
** Vitamin B6 8 %
** Magnesium 9 %
** Folate 38 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.