Baby Kale Salad with Roasted Beets, Pears and Feta Cheese

All summer I 've been hearing about a version of this salad that is served in a popular restaurant in Cederhurst, NY called Upper Crust.  Everyone who has eaten it there has raved about it and after all the hype I had to recreate it for myself. This is my version. I used baby kale because I love it, and it is super healthy but feel free to use spinach or even romaine lettuce. The roasted beets are sweet and lend a great texture and the pears lend a juicy sweetness as well. The shallots and pecans add crunch and texture and the Feta, well Feta on anything is great but in this salad it adds creamy, salty component that really makes this salad though some goat cheese would work well here as well. Dressed with a sweet and savory vinaigrette this salad absolutely lived up to its hype and I plan on making many times throughout the summer. Enjoy!



8 cups baby kale or spinach or romaine hearts
3 red beets
2 Tbl oil
2 large ripe pears, cubed
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
1/4 cup Chinese or Glazed pecans, roughly chopped
3/4 cup  crumbled Feta cheese (substitute goat cheese for Feta if desired)


Preheat the oven to 375. Peel the beets and cube them. Place them on a baking sheet and toss with the the oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast until tender, about 40 minutes. Cool the beets.
Place the baby kale in a bowl. Top with the roasted beets, cubed pears, sliced shallots, glazed pecans and feta cheese. Drizzle dressing on top and serve.

For the dressing:
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
3/4 cup light olive oil or canola oil
3 Tbl agave nectar or honey
1 Tbl Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to tatste

Whisk together all ingredients until emulsified.