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Poppy seed dressing being poured onto autumn chopped salad.
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5 from 2 votes

Autumn Chopped Salad

Made with tiny pieces of sweet pear, crisp romaine lettuce, crunchy pecans, sweet and chewy dried cranberries and hearty bacon all tossed and coated with a poppy seed balsamic vinegar dressing. A fall favorite green salad recipe you’ll love!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time0 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Course: Salads
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 397kcal
Author: Amanda Mason

Ingredients

  • 8 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
  • 2 pears, chopped
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 cup pecans, chopped
  • 8 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped
  • 4 ounces Havarti cheese, crumbled
  • ½ cup Poppy Seed dressing
  • ½ cup Balsamic dressing

Instructions

  • Cook the bacon in a skillet until done. Once done, place the bacon on a plate covered with a paper towel. Once cooled, chopped the bacon into bite-size pieces.
  • Chop the lettuce into bite-size pieces and rinse well. Drain the water to ensure the lettuce is completely dry.
  • Chop the pears and pecans into bite-size pieces. Crumble the Havarti cheese.
  • In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, pears, dried cranberries, pecans, bacon, and Havarti cheese.
  • Mix the Poppy Seed and Balsamic dressing together and drizzle onto the salad. Toss the salad and serve immediately.

Notes

  • This pear salad is best fresh. You can save any leftovers you might have but this salad tends to get soggy by the next day.
  • Since you're just mixing the bottled poppy seed and balsamic dressing together, this homemade salad dressing will last as long as the good by date on the bottle. 
  • If you want to make a healthier version of this recipe, use a lite balsamic and poppy seed dressing. You can also use turkey bacon instead of pork bacon.
  • To lower the fat content use feta cheese or skip the cheese entirely.  And, lower the fat by using only a ½ cup of pecans.
  • To lower the sugar level, use dried cranberries that contain less sugar.
  • Add some fresh grilled chicken breast to turn this one into a grilled chicken salad!

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 397kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 614mg | Potassium: 276mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 4244IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 119mg | Iron: 1mg