The air fryer is quite handy for roasting vegetables and fruits, like pears for this Pear, Spinach, and Goat Cheese Salad. The pears caramelize on the edges during their stint in the air fryer and come out soft, warm, and sweet. A scattering of earthy, nutty goat cheese provides contrast and toasts up to warm creaminess on top of the pears. The pears nestle in a bed of fresh baby spinach scattered with bright carrots and sliced green onions. While the pears "air fry," you can whisk up a simple, no hassle dressing for the salad. Just a drizzle of the salad dressing is all you need to dress the salad, as the juices from the warm pears will ooze invitingly over the spinach. The salad is great served as a side dish, but, if you'd like, you could make it a main dish by adding come chopped rotisserie chicken or half a boneless skinless chicken breast that you've dusted with a little seasoning and cooked in the air fryer. Yum, yum and healthy, too!
Air Fryer Pear, Spinach, and Goat Cheese Salad -- Serves 2-3
3 medium pears, halved and cores removed
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 tablespoon of dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons of dried cranberries
3 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/4 teaspoon of lemon pepper
1 tablespoon of honey (or, to taste)
2 tablespoons of goat cheese
3 cups of baby spinach, washed and dried well
1/4 cup of shredded carrots
2 tablespoons of chopped green onions
Slice a small piece off the bottom of the pears, put them in the air fryer in a single layer and sprinkle each pear half with some of the cinnamon, brown sugar, and dried cranberries. Put the air fryer basket in the machine, set the temperature for 360 and air fry the pears for 15-20 minutes. While the pears cook, in a small bowl or cup, whisk together the lemon juice, oil, lemon pepper, and honey until thoroughly combined. When the pears are almost done, sprinkle each of the halves with some of the goat cheese, reduce the heat on the air fryer to 320, and cook the pears for 5-10 minutes more or until the cheese has softened and puffed a little. Divide the spinach on the plates and sprinkle on the shredded carrots and green onions. When the pears are done, put 2-3 warm halves on top of the spinach and drizzle on a little of the dressing. Serve the salads while the pears are warm.
