Apple Cranberry Salad (Quick & Easy)

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Riffing on Waldorf salad and cranberries, I managed to make a completely new side dish! Apple Cranberry Salad is the perfect hearty fall salad, with healthy ingredients that go well with so many things. Whether for a holiday salad, special occasion, or a family dinner, roll your sleeves up and get chopping! The salad is ready in just a few minutes.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

I have fallen in love with this apple cranberry autumn salad! I bet it’ll become one of your new favorites too, for reasons like:

1. Packed full of fresh veggies.
2. A perfect side dish, yet filling enough to be a meal in its own right.
3. Makes perfect use of seasonal apples and cranberries.
4. Familiar flavors with a new twist!
5. Goes great as a side dish with all sorts of food.
6. Meat eaters will love it with pork, and vegetarians like me eat cheesy dishes on the side!
7. Comes together in a matter of minutes, with a few standard ingredients.

Inspiration Behind The Beautiful Apple Salad Recipe

I love a classic Waldorf apple walnut salad with celery and grapes in a mayonnaise sauce. But fresh out of grapes and looking for seasonal ideas, I decided to start experimenting. Adding cranberries to the list along with romaine lettuce, I created a masterpiece! Adding a little mustard to the salad dressing was the finishing touch, with just enough extra zing to blow you away. I think Waldorf salad has overtaken my new favorite apple salad recipe.

Ingredient list for Apple Cranberry Salad

To make apple walnut cranberry salad, you’ll need the following ingredients:

For the salad ingredients

For the dressing

Ingredient Substitutes

If you’re missing any of the above ingredients, you can sub in one of the following:

• Romain lettuce: Iceberg lettuce makes a good crisp salad, but you can also try softer, peppery fresh salad leaves like arugula, baby spinach, watercress, or even a mixed green salad.
• Braeburn apples: Granny Smiths are a good replacement.
• Walnuts: Pecans are also fine to use in the same way. Almonds will be tasty, too, although they have a different flavor.
• Celery: If you like mild aniseed flavor, slice fresh raw fennel very finely and use that instead. Add it to the acidulated water with the apples to stop it from browning.
• Cranberries: Sultanas will also work instead of fresh cranberries.
• Dijon mustard: Use a grainy mustard if you don’t have Dijon.

Variations

• Fresh pears are also really good in this salad. Try swapping the apples for pears or using half of each.
• To give the salad an extra tang, add some very thinly sliced raw red onions as well.
• To make the salad vegan, simply switch to a vegan mayonnaise.
• To make it go further for a main course, add some creamy cheese, like feta cheese, blue cheese such as gorgonzola cheese, or creamy goat cheese.

How to Make Apple Cranberry Salad With Easy Cooking Steps

Cooking Tools

• Chopping board
• Kitchen knife
• Medium bowl
• Small ovenproof dish or baking tray

Cooking Method

• Roasting
• Mixing

Preparation Steps

• Assemble all the tools and ingredients.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C.)
• Slice the romaine lettuce and the celery.
• Roughly chop the parsley.
• Peel and chop the garlic.
• Prepare a bowl of acidulated water.

Cooking Steps

For the walnuts

Put the walnuts in an oven proof bowl. Roast them in the hot oven for 6-8 minutes, until browned and fragrant.

Mixing Steps

For the apple salad dressing

Mix the parsley, oil, mayonnaise, garlic, and mustard together, stirring or shaking to emulsify. Season with salt and pepper to taste

For the apple cranberry walnut salad

1. Slice the apples into bite-sized pieces. Add them to the bowl of acidulated water to stop them browning.
2. When ready to eat, drain the apples, and discard the liquid. Tip them back into the bowl and add the celery, cranberries, romaine lettuce, and the toasted walnuts. Add the dressing to the apple walnut mixture.
3. Toss together, so everything is well coated in the creamy salad dressing. Transfer to salad bowls and serve immediately.

Best Tips to Ace This Recipe

• Acidulated water is just water with a little acid added to it to stop the cut apples from browning. It’s an important step unless you’re going to eat the moment you cut the apples. You can make acidulated water easily just by adding a splash of lemon juice or a dash of apple cider vinegar to a bowl of water.
• Be sure to toast the walnuts. It’s tempting to skip this step, but it really makes so much difference to the flavor, not to mention the pleasant crunch!
• Don’t use apples that are too sweet. You want your apples to be very juicy, with a crunchy texture and a tart flavor. The cranberries will provide enough sweetness, giving you a great sweet-tart flavor.

Time-Saving Tips

• You can often find ready-toasted walnuts available to buy, saving you the step of having to toast them yourself.
• You can also toast the walnuts well in advance of making the salad. I sometimes put a bowl into the oven when I have it on for something else, meaning my walnuts are toasted and ready-to-go!

What to Serve with Apple Cranberry Salad?

Any hearty fall dish will love cranberry apple salad as a side dish. Match it with:

• Cheesy Pumpkin Mac n Cheese
• Veggie Burgers, as a healthy alternative to fries
• Pumpkin Shakshuka

How to Store Apple Cranberry Salad?

Apple cranberry walnut salad will keep overnight in the fridge, although it is best eaten to eat it fresh, rather than make the salad in advance. If you have leftover salad, store in an airtight container, and consume within 24 hours for the best results. You might want to freshen it up with a couple extra leaves of freshly chopped lettuce.

This recipe is not recommended for freezing.

Conclusion

Now you know how to make Apple Cranberry Salad get toasting those walnuts and chopping those apples! See if you agree with me that its autumnal flavors are even better than a classic Waldorf salad and possibly one of the best apple salad recipes ever! Don’t forget to let me know in the comments how you get on.

More Vegetarian Side Dish Recipes

Looking for more healthy vegetarian side dishes for fall? Try out one of these:

• Fall Panzanella
• Roasted Pumpkin Quinoa Salad
• Broccoli Crunch Salad
• Roasted Green Beans and Potatoes

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