Apple and Radicchio Salad with Walnut Vinaigrette
Try this Apple and Radicchio Salad with Walnut Vinaigrette recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this Apple and Radicchio Salad with Walnut Vinaigrette recipe, or contribute your own.
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons juice from fresh squeezed clementines (about 2)
- 3 tablespoons walnut oil
- 1 teaspoon honey or agave syrup
- a healthy pinch of salt
- 1 small head of radicchio thinly sliced
- 1 small head of boston lettuce thinly sliced
- 1 cup thinly sliced radishes
- 2 granny smith apples cut into julienne strips
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts toasted
- Carbohydrate 7.18070892670105 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 9.80148938527101 g
- Fiber 1.6818906826973 g
- Protein 2.0597984375 g
- Saturated Fat 0.740295625934662 g
- Serving Size 1 1 -10 (61g)
- Sodium 14.9017304526938 mg
- Sugar 5.49881824400376 g
- Trans Fat 0.717246250493008 g
- Calories 118 calories
Step-by-step
- For the dressing: In a mason jar or other container with a air-tight lid, add all ingredients for the dressing.
- Secure lid and shake well until combined.
- Taste for salt and adjust if needed.
- To assemble the salad: Toss all salad ingredients into a large salad bowl.
- Toss with vinaigrette and divide between serving plates and sprinkle each plate with chopped walnuts.
- Alternatively, toss all items together in a large serving bowl with vinaigrette and walnuts and serve buffet style.
Unlike soft garden lettuces dressed simply in oil and vinegar, chicories such as radicchio demand emulsified dressings with enough body to cling to rigid, waxy leaves. Historical iterations of winter salads often relied on heavy cream or rendered fats to soften bitter greens, but modern preparations utilize nut oils and citrus juice to bridge the flavor gap between tart fruit and aggressive vegetable bitterness. Walnut oil provides a rich, roasted foundation that mirrors the earthy flavor compounds found naturally in the walnut kernels sprinkled on top.
Emulsifying the vinaigrette inside a sealed jar relies on mechanical agitation rather than slow whisking, forcing the walnut oil and red wine vinegar to suspend temporarily in the clementine juice and Dijon mustard. Raw garlic or shallots are frequently omitted from this style of vinaigrette to prevent sulfur compounds from overpowering the delicate sweetness of the julienned Granny Smith apples. Toasting the walnuts at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for eight to ten minutes releases essential oils that provide necessary crunch against the crisp bite of sliced radishes.
Preparation timing dictates the structural integrity of this dish, as salted dressings draw moisture out of Boston lettuce and radicchio within twenty minutes of contact. Storing components separately prevents premature wilting, allowing sliced apples to remain unoxidized if treated with citrus juice beforehand. Combining the elements immediately prior to service maintains the distinct textural contrast between tender greens and rigid fruit strips.
Freezing this salad completely ruins the cellular structure of both the radicchio and the apples, turning them limp and watery upon thawing. Raw brassicas and crisp orchard fruits contain high water content that expands during freezing ice crystal formation, rupturing cell walls permanently. Keeping un-dressed produce dry inside a refrigerator crisper drawer preserves structural crispness for up to five days before final assembly.
