The chefs at Eno Terra were talking about this great special salad last night made with local candied cranberries, roasted lemons vinaigrette and local cheese. It was just as good as it sounded – sweet and tart, crunchy and creamy.
The recipe itself is a chef’s secret but I recreated it at home and it came out pretty well. I used good quality dried cranberries instead of the candied ones (weeknight, after all).

Green Salad with Candied Cranberries and Cherry Grove Farm Toma

8 cups mixed greens
1 Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced
½ cup candied cranberries
4 ounces Cherry Grove Farm Toma, cut into ½ inch dice
Roasted lemon vinaigrette (recipe bellow)

In a large bowl, mix the greens with just enough vinaigrette to cover. Divide onto 4 plates. Mix the apples and cranberries with some vinaigrette and scatter over the lettuce. Top with the Toma and serve.

 

Roasted Lemon Vinaigrette
2 lemons
2 prigs of thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 400° F. Halve lemons crosswise and remove the seeds. Drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil and honey and place in a non-reactive baking dish with some thyme. Turn cut-side down and roast until the rind is tender and slightly golden, 25 to 45 minutes,  let cool.

Squeeze the juice and pulp into a blender. Add any juice from the baking dish. Process and slowly  add the extra-virgin olive oil until creamy and emulsified.