Palm Springs Date Salad with Goat Cheese and Candied Pecans

This Date Salad with Goat Cheese, Candied Pecans and Citrus Vinaigrette is a refreshingly tangy-and-sweet summer dish. I like to serve this over baby spinach leaves or mixed greens for a delicious lunch or light supper when it’s too hot to grill or cook indoors.

We discovered this mixed greens date salad during a trip to the Hyatt Regency in Indian Wells, and enjoyed it so much that we’ve had it on repeat during our weekly recipe rotation. If you can, be sure to use real Palm Springs dates. Medjool and Deglet Noor both work well in this salad.

Two of our favorite places for dates are Hadley’s Orchards and Shield’s Date Garden in Indio. (And while you’re there, don’t miss out on one of their famous date shakes!

To prepare this delicious date salad, you’ll need to prepare the citrus vinaigrette by blending fresh squeezed orange and lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, some real maple syrup, Dijon mustard and a shallot. You can do this well ahead of time so the flavors meld in the refrigerator. You’ll also need to cook the quinoa and have it chilled before you prepare the salad.

The assembly for this date salad with goat cheese is a breeze! Place your mixed greens or baby spinach in a large serving bowl and top with the chilled and cooked quinoa, crumbled goat cheese, and candied pecans. Although you can make candied pecans yourself, we just buy the small package at Trader Joe’s. When ready to serve, toss with the citrus vinaigrette and enjoy!

More Date Recipes

Stay in Touch!

Never miss a new cooking video by subscribing here.  Don’t forget to hit that notification bell!  You can also find me on Facebook and Instagram!

Date Salad with goat cheese, candied pecans and quinoa.

Palm Springs Date Salad with Goat Cheese, Candied Pecans + Citrus Vinaigrette

Recipe by Jason Hill – CookingSessions.com
This Date Salad with Goat Cheese, Candied Pecans and Citrus Vinaigrette is a refreshingly tangy-and-sweet summer dish. I like to serve this over baby spinach leaves or mixed greens for a delicious lunch or light supper when it's too hot to grill or cook indoors.
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Servings 6

Ingredients
  

For the Salad

  • 8 cups mixed greens or baby spinach leaves
  • 1 cup crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese
  • 10 Medjool or Deglet Noor dates pitted
  • 10 candied pecans or walnuts
  • 1/2 cup cooked red quinoa

Citrus Vinaigrette

  • 2/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
  • 6 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons minced shallot
  • 4 teaspoons pure maple syrup
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions
 

Make the Vinaigrette

  • Puree all of the vinaigrette ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor or blender.  With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the oil and blend until the dressing is emulsified. Pour into a jar or Tupperware container and refrigerate until ready to use.  Shake well before using.

Assemble the Salad

  • Place the greens in a large salad bowl. Top with the quinoa, dates, goat cheese and candied pecans.
  • Toss with citrus vinaigrette (to your taste) and serve cold.
Let’s get cooking!Subscribe to my cooking videos on YouTube at @ChefTips!

Notes

We discovered this mixed greens date salad during a trip to the Hyatt Regency in Indian Wells, and enjoyed it so much that we’ve had it on repeat during our weekly recipe rotation. If you can, be sure to use real Palm Springs dates. Two of our favorite places for dates are Hadley’s Orchards and Shield’s Date Garden in Indio. (And while you’re there, don’t miss out on one of their famous date shakes!
 
Keyword dates, feta cheese, goat cheese, pecans, salad, spinach
Join me on Facebook!Like and follow @ChefTips on all social media!

CookingSessions.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and links to Amazon.com. There is no additional cost to you.

AboutJason Hill

Hi, I’m Jason Hill, host of YouTube’s “Chef Tips” series. I graduated from culinary school in 1998, and gained my experience working the lines in Southern California. I launched my cooking videos in 2007. I love sharing quick and easy recipes that get people back in the kitchen.

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

Leave a Reply