Name: Romaine and Roasted Pear Salad with Fennel and Lemon-Mint Vinaigrette
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 4 firm Anjou pears or Bartlett pears (about 2 pounds); 1 tablespoon unsalted butter , melted; 2 tablespoons granulated sugar; 1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 1 tablespoon minced fresh mint leaves; 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest; 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice from 1 lemon; 1/2 teaspoon table salt; Ground black pepper; 1 head romaine lettuce , washed, dried, and torn into bite-sized pieces (about 8 cups loosely packed); 1 small bulb fennel (about 8 ounces), stems, fronds, and base trimmed; bulb halved, cored and sliced as thinly as possible (about 1 1/4 cups)

Why This Recipe Works

We preferred Bartlett or Anjou Pears in our pear salad recipe, roasting them al dente with butter and a little bit of sugar to sweeten them without making them syrupy. To complete our pear salad recipe, we combined the roasted fruit with bitter greens and cheese.

Instructions

for roasted pears

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position, place baking sheet or broiler pan bottom on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees.

Peel and halve each pear lengthwise. With paring knife or melon baller, remove core. Set each half cut-side down and slice lengthwise into fifths.

Toss pears with butter; add sugar and toss again to combine. Spread pears in single layer on preheated baking sheet, making sure each slice lies flat on surface. Roast until browned on bottom, about 10 minutes. Flip each slice and roast until tender and deep golden brown, about 5 minutes longer. Let pears cool while preparing salad.

for salad

Whisk together oil, mint, lemon zest and juice, salt, and pepper to taste in small bowl.

Combine romaine and fennel in large serving bowl. Add vinaigrette and toss gently to combine; scatter pears on top. Serve immediately.