Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps

21 Comments

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If you need a “classy” side that’s not too hard to make and delicious to eat, this recipe for Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps is for you! The Parmesan Crisps are deceptively easy to make and will wow and impress guests. Combined with the tang of the dressing and sweet crunch of the pears and pecans, this salad is sure to become one of your favorite salads to serve anytime you want an impressive meal accompaniment for a special occasion!

pear & pecan salad

Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps

Are you following me on facebook or instagram? If so, you know that we’ve been working really hard the last few weeks moving out of our barn and into our new Passive-Aggressive House. While the barn was a nice, inexpensive place to live while we built our house, we did have a few complaints. One of my husband’s major complaints about the barn was there was no real place to relax.

The small space did not allow for a comfortable couch for lounging, TV watching, or moving viewing. One of my real complaints was the lack of a nice kitchen for cooking. We’re out of the barn now and excited to have both a wonderful space for relaxing AND an impressive kitchen for creating delicious food. We’ll be celebrating soon with a fancy movie and dinner night for two, and this salad will take center stage.

Let’s get started!

Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps - how to make Parmesan Crisps from SimplifyLiveLove.com #StellaTakesManhattan #ad

The first thing to do is make the Parmesan Crisps. They are an integral part of this salad and look very fancy – but they are so simple to make! All you need to do is grate a nice hard cheese – I used Stella’s Parmesan Cheese, but Stella also makes a Mediterranean Parmesan Cheese I would have loved to use in these crisps if I could have found it at the store.

Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps - from SimplifyLiveLove.com

Simply place 1-2 TBS of grated Parmesan cheese in mounds on a silicon baking mat and bake in preheated oven (400 degrees) for 3-5 minutes. Let cool completely and then break apart or garnish your salad with an entire Parmesan crisp.

Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps - ingredients from SimplifyLiveLove.com

After your crisps are made, prepare the salads. Honestly, I sliced the pear and green onion and then just plated the salads individually instead of making a big salad in a bowl. I mounded a large handful of greens, then added the sliced pear, sliced green onion, and pecans, and topped with parmesan crisps and drizzled on the balsamic dressing. Here’s the printable recipe.

Yield: 6 servings

Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps

Pear & Pecan Salad with Parmesan Crisps

An easy to make salad that is both delicious and classy, sure to impress your guests for a fancy celebration.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

For the Salad

  • 1 bag prewashed spring mix salad, preferably organic
  • 1 pear, sliced into thin strips
  • 2 green onions, sliced
  • 1/2 cup raw pecans

For the Dressing

  • 1/2 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1 small clove crushed garlic
  • 1-1 TBS honey, preferably local raw honey
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly grated pepper

For the Parmesan Crisps

  • freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

Dressing

  1. Whisk together all ingredients.

Parmesan Crisps

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Pile 1-2 TBS of grated Parmesan cheese on a silicon baking mat.
  3. Bake for 3-5 minutes until crisp and bubbly.

To Make the Salad

  1. Simply plate the greens, pear, and green onion on individual plates. Add the Parmesan Crisps and top with dressing.
  2. Enjoy!

Notes

Make the crisps earlier in the day, or even the day before, so they're ready to when you need them.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 277Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 413mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 2gSugar: 11gProtein: 2g

Nutritional information is not always correct.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram tagging @simplifylivelove! I love to see your photos!

Want more delicious salad recipes that are sure to impress?

Citrus Salad with Caramelized Pecans and Pomegranates

Wilted Lettuce Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing

Mediterranean Tomato Salad

pear & pecan salad

About Michelle Marine

Michelle Marine is the author of How to Raise Chickens for Meat, a long-time green-living enthusiast, and rural Iowa mom of four. She empowers families to grow and eat seasonal, local foods; to reduce their ecological footprint; and to come together through impactful travel.

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21 Comments

  1. I love Cheese and make lots of crisps from it. When making my cheese crisps, since I don’t have a silicone baking sheet, I use parchment paper on top of a cookie sheet. I’ve even been know to make them in the microwave on occasion – well. . . . . actually quite often!

    These look delicious, and a lovely accompaniment for the fresh pear salad. (They’re picking pears right now – down the road from us!!) Time to get some at the you-pick!

  2. I use Stella cheese all the time. Never made parmesan crisps with them, but I love parmesan so I know I would love these.

  3. I’m so glad you posted a picture of what the cheese mounds look like before baking. Will they work on parchment paper, too?

  4. Those parmesan crisps really dress up a salad! Love the combination and I’m a salad fanatic! I entered the giveaway! Can’t wait to visit NY 😉

  5. This recipe is making me hungry! I can’t wait to make this–what could be better than crispy cheese? Great giveaway, too! 🙂

  6. I don’t use silicone, so do you think the cheese would work well on cast iron or stainless steel? I’ve done it in a skillet (my kids call it fried cheese). I’ve never thought about putting that on a salad. It sounds great!

    1. I think it would work find on either. I use cast iron & stainless steel a lot and a well seasoned cast iron skillet is my favorite!

  7. This looks so yummy! I can’t believe I’ve never made Parmesan crisps before, because they look amazing. Can’t wait to make this!

  8. This salad would appeal to half my family (but I’m sure everyone would try it, and perhaps be surprised), but everyone would love the crisps. I’ve never tried them, but happen to have some parm in the fridge! Let’s see how they go 🙂

  9. This recipe looks really good. I love salads with nuts and different flavor cheeses on them. This looks like a great option.

  10. I’m SO bored with my usual salad arrangement. Thank you for this fabulous new recipe! Love those Parm crisps! oxox

  11. Loving this combo of salad ingredients and will definitely try it soon! Fruit and nuts are my favorite extras to add. It’s such an easy way to jazz up a salad!

  12. This salad is scoring some serious points with me. I love fruit and nuts in salad and the Parmesan crisps look like the perfect compliment…I’m ready to dig in.