Shaved pear, cheese & bresaola salad

A rustic salad with cured beef, blue cheese and chicory teamed sweet pears, and dressed in a red wine vinaigrette

Prep:10 mins
Cook:5 mins

Serves 4
Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 436
fat 33g
saturates 10g
carbs 16g
sugars 14g
fibre 4g
protein 18g
salt 2.4g

Ingredients

100g walnut halves
2 crisp pears, blushing pink if possible
2 heads red chicory or radicchio, broken into leaves
100g bresaola (thinly sliced, cured beef)
140g dolcelatte or your favourite local soft blue cheese, sliced
1 tbsp virgin olive or rapeseed oil
2 tbsp red wine or port
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp golden caster sugar

Tip

How to prepare shaved pears

To prepare the shaved pears ahead, simply submerge them in a bowl of water, acidulated with the juice of a lemon. This will stop them turning brown. Drain and pat dry before scattering over the salad.

Method

Toast the nuts and make the dressing first as they will need to cool. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put the walnuts onto a baking tray and toast for 5 mins or until dark golden. Cool. Put the wine or Port in a small saucepan with the vinegar and sugar. Boil for 3 mins or until slightly syrupy (it will thicken as it cools, so don’t get carried away), then take off the heat and set aside.
When ready to serve, shave thin slices from the pears using a large sharp knife, mandolin or potato peeler. Mingle them together with the leaves, bresaola, cheese and nuts on a large platter. Season the dressing, then drizzle over the salad, followed by the oil. Enjoy straight away.

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