Friday, May 4, 2012

Recipe: Spinach Salad with Apple Chicken Sausage

About a week or two ago, I came across this recipe in a Taste of Home magazine and thought it looked delicious.  I made it on a week night and immediately after making it, I had gone to my computer to write up this post, but it somehow got deleted, so I'm writing it again!

This recipe was actually in an ad for Al Fresco Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage.  I couldn't find this brand at the grocery, but Johnsonville had similar sausages that were on sale, so I decided to give these a try.  This salad was delicious! I loved it and will definitely be making this again soon.

Ingredients:
1 package of Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage
2 tsp. EVOO
1/2 cup pecan halves
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 cups radicchio, thinly sliced
6-8 oz. spinach
1/2 pear, very thinly sliced
1/2 cup light blush wine vinaigrette
2 oz. goat cheese
pepper to taste
lemon zest for top

Directions:
1. Coat saute pan with EVOO over medium high heat.  Add pecans and saute for 2-3 minutes.  Add sugar and cinnamon and toss to coat.  Remove from heat.

2. Coat another saute pan with cooking spray and heat the sausage until browned.  Turn as needed.

3. Place the spinach in a bowl with red onion, radicchio, and pear slices.  Toss with blush wine vinaigrette.

4. Top with pecans, goat cheese, and sausage.  Add pepper and lemon zest to taste.

This was such an easy and delicious recipe!  After my first bite I was really impressed!  I loved the mix of sweetness from the pecans with the creaminess of the goat cheese.  The apple flavor from the sausage really stood out and paired nicely with the pears, pecans, and onion.  I didn't really care for the radicchio.  I hadn't really had it before, and it was a very strong earthy, pungent taste that I didn't care for.  I didn't have lemon, so I didn't add that, but it's up to you.
I really liked this dressing too, it was light and sweet but not too overpowering. It was great!

If you haven't had these chicken sausages, they are great.  I have used them in pasta dishes or you could grill them and serve on a bun or with peppers and onions.  They are lower in fat and calories, so they are a nice substitute for regular sausage.

This was a great summer salad recipe!  Hope you enjoy!

~Kate

No comments:

Post a Comment