Nut, fruit combos make salads pop
Growing up in a large Lebanese household, salad was served almost every day. Mom would pound garlic, salt and a little pepper together in a bowl with her heirloom pestle, then stir in lemon juice and either corn or olive oil. The greens and vegetables would vary with the season. Iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and bell peppers in the summer. Fall and winter meant greens only, no add-ins or toppings. Escarole and bitter curly endive were favorites.
Fast forward to today, and a myriad of salad add-ins and toppers, including honey roasted nuts and fruit, are available year ’round.
The nut and fruit combos are especially popular during the colder months here.
I will admit, it took me a while to embrace the sweet/savory duo of nuts and dried fruit on salads, but I’m sure a fan now. So much so that I’ve developed a budget-friendly homemade version.
Inspired by my honey roasted whole almond recipe, I simply swapped out pecans for almonds. Adding dried cranberries to the toasted, cooled nuts provides a slightly sweet, chewy element. Sprinkled on a mixed greens salad, they add pops of color, crunch and flavor.
And, as with most of my recipes, there’s a bonus – the cranberry pecan topping is terrific stirred into hot cereal or sprinkled on plain yogurt.
Homemade cranberry pecan salad topper
When you make the honey coating in the skillet, it won’t look like there’s enough to cover all the nuts, but no worries, that’s plenty. And don’t omit the salt mixed in with the sugar. It balances out the sweetness of the mix.
Makes up to 31⁄2 cups. 4 tablespoons granulated sugar 1⁄2 teaspoon salt 2 cups pecan halves 2 tablespoons each: honey and water 2 teaspoons oil
1 to 11⁄2 cups dried cranberries, chopped a bit if real large.
Mix sugar and salt together in small bowl. Set aside.
Pour pecans in single layer on cookie sheet. Toast, stirring once, until fragrant, about 7 minutes or so. Be careful, they tend to burn easily once they’re fragrant and toasted enough. This can be done ahead of time.
Stir together honey, water and oil in skillet over medium heat and bring to a boil.
Immediately stir in roasted nuts, lower heat to a simmer and continue to cook and stir constantly until liquid is absorbed, several minutes or so.
Transfer nuts to large bowl and pour sugar/salt mixture all over the top. Stir to coat evenly.
Pour nuts in a single layer onto a sprayed or parchment lined cookie sheet.
When cool, break apart as best you can. If you want, you can chop them up just a bit. Then mix with the cranberries.
Store, covered, in refrigerator.