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Marinated & Grilled Apple Salad with Spicy Mustard Greens

I love spicy mustard greens as a component in fresh salads. This particular salad incorporates some mustard greens as the base for marinated and grilled apples, and is served with a honey Dijon marinade that is used for the grilled apples. If you can’t find spicy mustard greens, use whatever salad greens you like.
The following recipe makes 4 large salads.

Ingredients

  • 3 Tbsp sherry vinegar
  • 1 shallot, (minced)
  • 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 Tbsp whole grain mustard
  • 2 Tbsp honey
  • ½ tsp Kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp freshly-ground black pepper
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 3 Honeycrisp or Gala apples, (washed, cores discarded, cut into thick slices)
  • 2 cups spicy mustard greens, (stems removed, greens roughly chopped)
  • ½ cup mild cheddar cheese, (cut into small cubes)
  • ¼ cup raisins, (soaked in hot water for 5 minutes)
  • ½ cup pecans, (lightly toasted)

Instructions 

  • To make the apple marinade, in a large mixing bowl, whisk together 3 Tbsp sherry vinegar with the minced shallot, 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 Tbsp whole grain mustard, 2 Tbsp honey, ½ tsp Kosher salt, ¼ tsp freshly-ground black pepper, and ¼ cup olive oil.
  • Pour the marinade into a large Ziplock plastic bag and add the thick apple slices you prepared.
  • Gently coat the apples in the marinade, and carefully seal the bag after removing as much air as possible.
  • Place the sealed plastic bag of marinating apples in a bowl (so it doesn’t leak) in the fridge for 2 hours, or for up to 24 hours.
  • Once your apples have sat in the marinade for at least 2 hours or overnight, remove them from the marinade, and save the marinade for use as your honey Dijon vinaigrette.
  • Drain the apples on a plate.
  • Preheat your grill to 400F.
  • Grill the apples on both sides and set aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl, toss together the spicy mustard greens, mild cheddar cheese, plumped raisins, and toasted pecans with some of the apple marinade you reserved earlier.
  • Taste your mixture and see if you want to add kosher salt or freshly-ground black pepper or more sherry vinegar.
  • When you are satisfied with how the dressed mixture tastes, divide the salad mixture among the four plates.
  • Top each plate with the grilled apples from earlier.
  • Serve immediately.

Notes

You can marinate the apples a day ahead of grilling them, although they tend to get a bit soft if they stay in the marinade in a bag for more than 24hrs.