Apple Fennel Salad with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

If you want a vibrant fall salad that’s packed with flavor, look no further than this apple fennel salad. It’s sweet, salty, tart, and absolutely delicious.

Apple Fennel Salad 

This apple fennel salad is a fall favorite. It’s perfect as a side for a weeknight dinner, or a lovely appetizer for guests.

My mom and I love making this salad for Thanksgiving. The apples are appropriate for the season, but more than that, the salad itself is refreshing and light. It’s very suitable for a heavy entrée like turkey as it balances out the meal. 

Part of the lightness of the salad comes from the blue cheese vinaigrette. Even though you’ve got cheese in the dressing, it’s still lighter than other dressings like caesar or ranch. 

The blue cheese also pairs really beautifully with all the ingredients in the salad. You have sweet and tart apples, slightly bitter Belgian endives, a mild licorice flavor from the fennel, and a touch of pepper from the radishes. 

This apple fennel salad is definitely not your typical, boring house salad. 

If you want a salad that makes a statement and will have friends asking you for the recipe, this salad is it!

Apple Fennel Salad with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

A fall salad made with apples, fennel, endives, radishes and a delicious blue cheese vinaigrette. 

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Ingredients

• 3 belgian endives
• 1 small fennel bulb, stalks removed
• 3 radishes, stems and leaves removed
• 2 small Gala apples, stem and core removed
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted and chopped

for the dressing

• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp champagne vinegar (or white wine vinegar)
• 1/2 lemon, juice only
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large clove of garlic, minced
• 1/2 shallot, minced
• 3 sprigs thyme, leaves only
• 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
• pinch of salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Julienne the endives, vertically slicing leaves into long thin pieces. Do the same for the apple and fennel. The apples and fennel should look like matchsticks. Slice the radishes in thin, round shavings. Toss all of these with he chopped hazelnuts together in a large bowl.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the dijon, lemon juice and champagne vinegar together. As you're whisking, slowly stream in the olive oil. Add the garlic, shallot, thyme leaves, along with a pinch of salt and pepper; give it a whisk. Stir in the blue cheese. 
3. Pour the vinaigrette all over the salad, then gently toss to combine the dressing and salad. Chill in the fridge for 15 minutes, or serve immediately. 

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 4 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 283

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