Dried Cranberry Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad is the ONE and ONLY salad you will need for the holiday season. Sweet, savory, fruity, crunchy and a gorgeous centerpiece.
Santa is checking his list, checking it twice, he wants to find out who is naughty and nice….
You can be both naughty (eat delicious food) and be nice (eat healthy food) this holiday season with this delightful Dried Cranberry, Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad. With a combination of crisp healthy greens and dried fruit to combat the naughty sugar glazed pecans and blue cheese, it is the perfectly balanced salad.
Dried Cranberry Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad is also a very festive for the holiday season with the beautiful green and red colors of the salad as a back drop for the cinnamon sugar pecans. Drizzling the salad with either the homemade citrus dressing or cranberry dressing just kicks up the entire experience.
Fantastic Salad for Holiday Side Dish or Dish To Pass
You can set it up like a salad bar with a big bowl of fresh greens and then have separate bowls for dried cranberries, sugar glazed pecans, blue cheese and the dressings. Friends, family and kids can make their salads just the way they like it. This Holiday Salad is so beautiful, it becomes the instant center piece to your holiday meal.
Cinnamon Sugar Glazed Pecans
The sugar and cinnamon glazed pecan are a very yummy festive snack. In less than 5 minutes, you can have them from stovetop to your mouth. Trust me, you will wish you made more. They can be stored for a couple of weeks in a Tupperware or sealed baggie. In moist and humid Hong Kong, they may only last about 5 days in storage.
Do you ever dread having to bring a dish to pass for an event? Dried Cranberry Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad is easy to throw together and will be the hit of the party. We like to serve the blue cheese and salad dressing on the side and let the guests help themselves. If you are looking for other delicious sides to go with your holiday meal, be sure to check out our Thanksgiving recipes for some inspiration.
Every Holiday Salad needs Sugar Glazed Pecans
We make our sugar glazed pecans right on the stove top. The addition of cinnamon, sugar, a pinch of salt and kick of chili is just what you need to bring this nut to the next level. They are completely addictive. You can use a sugar alternative, but you will need to adjust the sweetness level to your liking as each type of sweetener is different. We actually used Korean dried chili ground for this recipe but a dash of dried red chili flakes also works well. Adjust the spice to your desired heat level.
If you are looking for some fun and interesting Holiday mains be sure to read our Top 10 Holiday Dinner Ideas.
Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday season!
If you are looking for more salad recipes, be sure to try our…
Nutty Ginger Tamari Quinoa Salad
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Dried Cranberry Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad
Ingredients
Sugar Glazed Pecans
- 3 cups pecans unsalted
- 1 cup sugar
(or sugar alternative to your level of sweetness) - 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp hot pepper flakes
(optional- it gives the nuts a little holiday zing) - 1/4 tsp salt
Cranberry Citrus Dressing
- 1 cup cranberries
fresh - 1 orange
peeled and sectioned remove peel - 1/3 cup sugar
or sugar alternative - 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp grated onion
- 1 cup Olive oil
Dried Cranberry Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad
- 10 cup washed mixed greens or baby spinach
- 1 cup dried cranberries (unsweetened natural if available)
- 1 cup carrots grated
- 1/2 cup radish grated - optional
- 1 cup alfalfa sprouts optional
- 1 cup crumbled blue cheese optional
- Sugar Glazed Pecan recipe below
- Cranberry dressing recipe below
Instructions
- Sugar Glazed Pecans - In a large frying pan add pecans, sugar or sugar alternative, cinnamon, hot pepper flakes and salt and cook over medium heat until the sugar is all melted and pecans are crispy. Stir gently and frequently and watch them closely so they do not burn. Place sugared cinnamon pecan on parchment paper to cool and rinse your spoon and pan immediately as this forms a candy at this stage.
- Cranberry Dressing - in a blender add cranberries, orange, sugar or sugar alternative, red wine vinegar, salt grated onion and olive oil and blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Assemble the Dried Cranberry Sugar Glazed Pecan Holiday Salad - Place washed greens into a large salad bowl and garnish with dried cranberries, carrots, radish, alfalfa sprouts, crumbled blue and sugar glazed pecans. Dress with cranberry dressing. You can also set up as a salad bar with the greens in a large bowl and all of the topping in separate bowls and let everyone help themselves. Enjoy!
*with smiles from across the Pond* This looks so very pretty and festive . . . and delightfully American ! No holidays here this side of Yule and pecans and cranberries do not oft feature in our recipes. I must admit I do not usually have fruit in my savoury salads either . . . Do like your dressing and the inclusion of onion amidst the sweet ingredients. Do not think I can access fresh cranberries at any time of the year here . . . but, with some substitutions should be able to present something similar to your holiday fare . . . so hope the multiple difficulties you are experiencing will ameliorate just a tad to allow you to lift your glasses with hope in your hearts . . .
Hi there Eha! So happy to see you here! We are pretty much ready to swim over to thy pond! (smiling) This recipe is very Americana, isn’t it…? Perfect for any holiday or just any day that you need to brighten the tablescape. Stay well dear friend.
Yummy, I am going to make this salad as soon as possible. I am intrigued by the cranberry citrus dressing.
Eating a lot of salad is a great way to balance all the cookies I’m making and munching on this month! This looks really attractive and tasty.
Love the colors and particularly the texture of this! SO attractive. And SO tasty too, I’ll bet. 🙂 Really nice — thanks.
Thank you John! Isn’t fun to add loads of different textures in a salad. It is like a little party in your mouth. Hope you are on recovery!
What a beautiful salad this is, it sounds perfect for the season, what great flavours.
Looks pretty and colourful, healthy too. Perfect for this season
This really is a great holiday salad. Love all the colors, textures, and flavors. Great example of how eating well can also mean healthy.
I can munch on those golden, brownish, glamor-coated Pecans all day long 🙂 Thanks for the yummy idea, Bam 🙂
I’ve made similar pecans but I love the heat you’ve added! This is just the kind of salad I love to make an eat… I’m bookmarking it for later this week:)
This is a yummy salad and a treat at the same time.
Interesting–I never knew that the word salad came from salt.
LOL, now that you know this no more restless, sleepless nights. I hope you are doing well!
Those pecans look fabulous!
Thanks Greg!
The pecans look like glittering ornament on the “tree”. Very nice! I must try this.
Thanks Christy! These little pecans are quite addictive. I am also loving your divaofdelicious website!!
Hola Bam, well done, looks great….saludos from Valencia
Hola Katy! It is so good to hear from you. I am loving your katyarichinternationalkitchen website!!What is cooking this week in your kitchen?
It’s just past 7 in the morning, and I’m wondering if I have all the ingredients to get this on the table for lunch… 🙂
Welcome back home!!! Good news, even if you have to run to the store to get some ingredients you can still have this little number on the table in less than 20 minutes. Loving that… Take care
What a delightfully taste-explosion salad and both dressing sound sensational.
🙂 Mandy
Thanks Mandy! I love all the different textures of the salad with the chewy dried cranberries, crunchy pecans and creamy blue cheese.