Honeycrisp Salad

When the holiday table is crowded with heavy, soft dishes, this Honeycrisp salad is the one crisp, cold thing on it. That’s why I keep making it: sweet apple, sharp cider vinaigrette, and a little blue cheese cut right through the rich food around them.

It takes about 15 minutes, no cooking, and two apples and a head of frisée make four side servings. The quiet trick is the cumin in the vinaigrette, which stops the dressing tasting like plain sweet apple.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s ready in about 15 minutes with no cooking, so it’s the easy job on a busy holiday menu.
• Sweet Honeycrisp apple, bitter frisée and arugula, and sharp blue cheese give you something different in every bite.
• The spiced cider vinaigrette comes together in a jar in under a minute from pantry staples like cider vinegar, honey, and cumin.
• Two apples and a head of frisée make four side servings, so a little produce goes a long way.
• It works as a fresh side next to a heavy main, or as a light lunch on its own.

Ingredients You’ll Need

A few of these are worth a closer look; the printable card below has the full list with quantities.

• Honeycrisp apples: sliced into thin matchsticks with the skin left on, which adds color and a crisp bite. Braeburn or Pink Lady fill in if you can’t find Honeycrisp.
• Frisée and wild arugula: the frisée’s curly, slightly bitter leaves and the peppery arugula stand up to the sweet apple instead of disappearing under it. If frisée is hard to find or pricey, baby spinach or extra arugula stands in.
• Candied walnuts: they bring crunch and a little sweetness. Use store-bought candied walnuts, and if they’ve gone soft, a minute in a dry pan brings the crunch back.
• Blue cheese: crumbled through for a salty, tangy bite against the apple. It reads milder once it’s tossed into the salad, but feta or goat cheese are easy swaps if it’s too strong for you.
• Spiced cider vinaigrette: apple cider vinegar, honey, and olive oil with a pinch of cinnamon, cumin, black pepper, and salt, shaken in a jar. The cinnamon and cumin give it a warm, spiced edge rather than straight sweetness.

How to Make Holiday Honeycrisp Salad

A complete printable recipe and the measurements in both US customary and metric are available in the recipe card below.

Here’s how it comes together.

Shake the Spiced Cider Vinaigrette

Put the apple cider vinegar, honey, olive oil, cinnamon, cumin, black pepper, and salt in a jar with a tight lid.

Shake it hard until the dressing looks smooth and the honey has blended in.

Taste it now, because this is the moment to adjust the honey or vinegar before it touches the greens.

Toss the Salad

Add the frisée, arugula, Honeycrisp apple matchsticks, candied walnuts, and crumbled blue cheese to a large bowl.

Pour over as much of the vinaigrette as you like and toss gently so everything gets a light coat.

Add the Dressing and Cheese

Dress it right before serving, since the greens start to soften once the dressing is on.

To get ahead for a holiday, wash and dry the greens up to a day before and shake the vinaigrette up to a week ahead, then keep both in the fridge.

The olive oil firms up and turns cloudy when it’s cold, so let the jar sit at room temperature until the oil loosens, then shake it hard again before you dress the salad.

Recipe Notes and Expert Tips

• Taste the vinaigrette before it goes on. A cider dressing can read sharp, so start with less honey or vinegar and build it up to balance.
• Dry the greens well. Frisée’s curls trap water, and wet leaves slide the dressing straight off.
• Toast the candied walnuts in a dry pan for a minute to bring back their crunch if they’ve gone soft.

Recipe Variations

• In fall I swap the walnuts for pecans and stir in a handful of dried cranberries; it’s a version I’ve tested and it holds up.
• For a vegan version, leave out the blue cheese or use a vegan one and swap the honey for maple or agave syrup; I’ve tested that and the dressing still balances the same.
• Pear version: Swap the apples for ripe but firm pears, sliced into thin matchsticks the same way, for a softer, juicier salad.

How to Store Leftovers

Honeycrisp salad is best the day it’s made, so this is about the little that’s left. Keep any extra salad in an airtight container in the fridge and eat it within about a day, before the greens give out.

If you dressed only part of it, store the rest of the vinaigrette separately in its jar in the fridge for up to a week so those greens stay crisp. Let it come to room temperature and shake it again before using.

What to Serve With Honeycrisp Salad

This salad does its best work next to something warm and hearty, as the crisp, sharp counterpoint on the plate.

I set it beside a main like creamy skillet chicken thighs or a chicken pot pie, both rich enough to want a fresh side alongside.

To round out a fall meal, start with a bowl of corn chowder and put a basket of cheddar biscuits on the table.

For a lighter meal, top the salad with sliced leftover roast chicken or turkey. Either way, the salad keeps the plate from feeling heavy.

FAQs

More Salad Recipes You’ll Love

A few more salads worth making:

• Cobb Salad. Build this when you want blue cheese in a full main-course salad rather than a side.
• Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad. A good holiday lunch with the same sweet-and-savory mix of fruit and nuts, piled on greens or into a sandwich.
• Broccoli Salad with Creamy Dressing. The make-ahead cold side for a cookout or potluck, crunchy with bacon and cranberries.
• Seven Layer Salad. Layer this one ahead in a clear bowl for a gathering, then add the dressing just before serving so the layers stay crisp.
• Italian Pasta Salad with Salami. When you need a heartier, carb-based salad for a crowd, this is the one to bring.