Apple Pie Salad

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This salad features a Brown Butter Vinaigrette and a Pumpkin Seed Streusel. Adapted from a recipe from Ginger’s Kitchen, a blog at www.food52.com.

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It’s our favorite fruit and American as, well, its most popular baked good.

A new apple season is here, offering a crisp, sweet edge to fall meals plus the promise of lots of pie – and pie-inspired dishes.

What makes apples and apple pie so all-American?

“It brings people together,” said Ken Haedrich, author of “Apple Pie: 100 Delicious and Decidedly Different Recipes for America’s Favorite Pie.” “It’s the closest thing we have, food-wise, to a universal symbol of goodness and contentment.

“It manages to do this with unabashed honesty and not an ounce of pretense. It’s an edible reflection of America’s best character traits.”

In honor of 2011 as the “Year of the Pie,” Haedrich’s “Apple Pie” was re-released this month – just in time for the new apple crop.

Haedrich loves all sorts of apple pies, particularly those with a brown sugar crumb topping.

For pies, he prefers Winesap apples.

“It’s hard to find but worth looking for in an area where they’re grown. It’s the perfect blend of sweet, tart and juicy, with wonderfully complex flavor. Among the more common varieties, I like Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Fuji and Jonathan.”

“My best advice: If you find an apple that makes a great pie, stick with it,” he said, “but don’t be afraid to experiment.”

The flavor of apple pie inspires variations such as Apple Pie Cookies, Apple Pie Salad and Apple Pie Soup.

Baked in a pie plate, an apple pie cake looks, smells and tastes like its namesake. An apple stack cake piles up pie-like apple butter filling (using dried apples) between fluffy layers.





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  • 4

Ingredients

  • Pumpkin Seed Streusel:
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
  • 1/3 cup rolled oats
  • 1 heaping tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • Brown Butter Vinaigrette:
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 small shallot, minced
  • Juice of half a lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
  • Few pinches finely chopped fresh marjoram or fresh thyme
  • Kosher salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Salad:
  • 1 head red leaf lettuce, washed and torn into bite- size pieces
  • 1 sweet-tart apple, cored and sliced thin
  • 2 ounces fresh chevre

Preparation

Step 1

Pumpkin Seed Streusel: Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine the flour, pumpkin seeds, oats, brown sugar, salt and 3 tablespoons of butter (cut into small pieces) in a small bowl. Use your fingers to blend the ingredients, until you’re left with large streusel-y crumbles.

Spread the streusel on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until lightly browned and crisp. Cool slightly.

Brown Butter Vinaigrette: Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in a small pan over medium-low heat. Watch the butter carefully – when the foaming has subsided and the butter has started to brown, add the minced shallot and soften for one minute. Remove from heat, and transfer to a small bowl. Whisk in the lemon juice, a sprinkling of fresh marjoram or thyme, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Salad: Toss the lettuce, sliced apple and chevre with a few tablespoons of the Brown-Butter vinaigrette. Add dressing as needed until leaves are nicely coated. Sprinkle liberally with the Pumpkin Seed Streusel.

Nutrition Information:
Per serving
394 calories
29 g fat (16 g saturated)
9 g protein
26 g carbohydrates
60 mg cholesterol
3 g fiber
318 mg sodium

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