Marinated Grape and Goat Cheese Salad
With seared, marinated grapes, creamy goat cheese, crunchy almonds and a sweet balsamic reduction, I think you just found your new lunch go-to.
Ingredients
For the Balsamic Glaze
- 1 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon honey
For the Marinated Grapes
- 1 large bunch red grapes
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 and ½ Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon honey
For the Salad
- mixed salad greens
- 1 log goat cheese
- 1 cup roughly chopped roasted almonds
Instructions
For the Balsamic Glaze
- In a small sauce pan over medium heat, bring the balsamic vinegar and honey to a boil, and then immediately reduce the heat to low.
- Simmer for 20 minutes, or until thickened to your liking. Be careful not to burn.
For the Grapes
- Whisk all marinade ingredients (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and honey) together in a medium mixing bowl.
- Pick the grapes off of the stem and drop them into the marinade. Stir.
- Let the grapes marinate for 1 hour, and up to a few days.
- When you're ready to assemble the salad, preheat a 10 or 12 inch frying pan over medium for a few minutes over medium heat, until hot.
- Scoop out half of the grapes from the marinade with a slotted spoon, and carefully place them in the hot pan.
- Let them sear, shaking the pan occasionally to roll the grapes over, until brown spots form and/or a few grapes start to burst.
- Pour the seared grapes into a bowl.
Assembly
- Arrange half of your salad greens on a plate or platter. Tear off pieces of goat cheese, and sprinkle them around the plate. Do the same with half of the fresh marinated grapes, half of the seared marinated grapes, and half of the almonds.
- Drizzle a small amount of balsamic glaze over the first layer.
- Arrange the other half of your greens on top of the first layer, then add the rest of your ingredients. Drizzle another small amount of balsamic glaze over the whole salad.
- Enjoy!