Salad with Asian Pear, Watercress, and Gorgonzola

The best Asian Pears are sold at, well, guess where, Asian Food Stores! In Savannah, Han Mi Korean Store (located in the corner of Bull and DeRenne) sells these sweet and crunchy pears.



Toss gently watercress and other greens with White Wine Vinaigrette and top with Gorgonzola and toasted pine nuts. Place thinly sliced Asian Pears along with mixed greens.

White Wine Vinaigrette
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 shallot, minced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
Pinch of kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of sugar
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. thinly sliced fresh basil leaves (Optional)

In a blender, combine all ingredients except oil and basil until smooth. Slowly add the oil with motor running to emulsify and thicken. Stir in basil, if using.

TIP: To prevent pear from turning brown (apple works, too), put a few teaspoons of salt in two cups of cold water. Dissolve salt well. Quickly dip sliced pear in salted water and drain. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate until needed. Will keep for several hours, for thicker slices, a few days.