Radicchio, Chayote, Asian Pear, Basil & Pecan Slaw

​When Marzetti® Simply Dressed® asked me to help spread the word about their refrigerated salad dressing line, I knew right away that I’d be trying the blue cheese dressing first! As a kid I thought blue cheese was the most disgusting thing I’d ever tasted. Over the years I grew to love the funky tang of it, and now I can’t get enough of it!One of the things I love about blue cheese is how it goes so well not just with savory things, but also with sweet things. This Marzetti Simply Dressed Blue Cheese Dressing has a bold blue cheese flavor, and the perfect blend of creamy vs. tangy from the added vinegar and buttermilk. It’s perfection. I also like that I can recognize all of the ingredients on the label–and that it doesn’t contain any high fructose corn syrup, MSG, or preservatives!

To do this delicious dressing justice, I wanted to create a winter salad that would have a pleasing texture and tart freshness to complement the bold flavor of the blue cheese. I knew I’d be using radicchio for the base, because I love the bright color and the slight bitterness it has. If you can’t find radicchio, you can use red cabbage, but the flavor profile will be a little different.I chose Asian pears for that necessary hint of sweetness, but to keep the carbs down I also added some Chayote squash which has a neutral flavor and pleasing crunch similar to the pears. If you omit the pears and double the Chayote, you’ll save 2g net carbs per serving. I wanted to add nuts, and since pecans and blue cheese are always great together that was an easy decision.

The only thing I wasn’t sure about was the fresh basil. I almost chickened out and went with parsley, which probably would have worked fine, but I’m glad I didn’t because while basil and blue cheese isn’t an obvious pairing, it was truly sublime in this salad!

Be aware that the radicchio will start to brown very quickly after cutting, so toss it with the lemon juice right away to preserve its beautiful color! I chose not to mix the dressing in for the sake of the photos, but after I took them I tossed everything together and it was fantastic.

This dressing is delightfully creamy, but not so thick and heavy as to make the salad clunky–it distributed nicely through the slaw and had a great consistency. I would suggest not mixing in the dressing too far in advance of serving though–an hour at the most to keep it from getting soggy.

Marzetti Simply Dressed refrigerated salad dressings also has a Balsamic Salad Dressing that I suspect would be really tasty with this slaw–especially as an alternative if you’re not a fan of blue cheese. This salad was pleasantly crunchy and refreshing to eat. Mr. Hungry loved it too, so it will definitely be going into our regular rotation for the next few months–at least until fresh summer produce is at its peak again!

Radicchio, Chayote, Asian Pear, Basil & Pecan Slaw

Yield: 4 servings

Serving Size: approximately 1 1/4 cups

A bold and exciting low carb winter salad recipe with lots of favor and texture.

Ingredients

• 4 cups of radicchio, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup Asian pear, julienned (cut into matchsticks)
• 1/2 cup Chayote squash, julienned
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/3 cup 1/3 cup Marzetti® Simply Dressed® Blue Cheese Dressing

Instructions

• Combine the Radicchio, Asian pear, Chayote squash, basil, pecans, and lemon juice in a medium sized bowl. Toss with the blue cheese dressing right before serving.

Notes

Approx. nutrition info per serving: 170 calories, 16g fat, 5g net carbs, 2g protein

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This post is sponsored by Marzetti® Simply Dressed® but all recipes, photographs and opinions are my own!

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