Baby Greens with Candied Hazelnuts and Blue Cheese

Tired of the same old salad? I know that I get sick of eating the same thing over and over again. So to spice up our salad or should I say sweeten up our salad, I have candied hazelnuts to add a twist to your salad. If you want to keep the sugar and calorie count down you can just dry roast the hazelnuts instead, skipping the candied hazelnut section of this recipe. This recipe makes 6 servings and is around 300 calories per serving.

Ingredients:
For Candied Hazelnuts:
½ cup water
½ cup sugar
¾ cup hazelnuts
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

For Dressing:
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 medium shallot, minced
1 ½ teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
½ extra virgin olive oil

For Salad:
1- 5 ounce bag of mixed baby greens
2 large ripe pears, halved, cored, and thinly sliced lengthwise
1 cup crumbled blue cheese

Directions:
In a small saucepan simmer water with sugar, stirring until sugar is dissolved.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. And lightly butter or use cooking spray on a shallow baking pan.

Coarsely chop hazelnuts. Stir nuts into water and sugar syrup, and simmer for 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon transfer nuts to the baking pan, arranging in one flat layer. Bake nuts in the middle of the oven until golden brown, around 15 minutes. Immediately add butter to nuts, tossing to coat and separate.

Transfer the nuts to a plate to cool (nuts will crisp as they cool). Nuts can be candied 2 days ahead of time. They need to be kept in an airtight container and a cool dry place.

Whisk lemon juice, mustard, shallot, and thyme in a small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss greens in large bowl with enough dressing to coat. Divide greens into 6 plates. Top with pear slices, dividing equally. Sprinkle with cheese and candied hazelnuts.

Bon Appétit