favorite salad

this is my new favorite salad. it's a very "fall" salad, which i'm enjoying now despite the fact that it's spring. it's full of good-for-you foods, and also some that just plain taste good. it's a lovely side dish for grilled or roasted chicken and fish, but also could be a meal on it's own for a lunch.

ingredients:
1 bag or box of mixed field greens
1 gala apple
1 handful of pecans
peccorino romano
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves

for the dressing:
2 tablespoons fig spread
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

special equipment:
vegetable peeler

directions:
in a small bowl combine the fig spread and the vinegar until there are no lumps. then, while whisking, drizzle in the olive oil until it emulsifies. finely slice the basil into ribbons and add to the dressing. set aside.

in a small pan with no oil dry roast the pecans for about 1 minute to bring out the flavors. then set these aside to cool.

cut the apple into quarters and remove the seeds. finely slice each quarter into pieces the thickness of a nickel. add these to the lettuce in a large bowl. roughly chop the pecans, and add to the bowl. finely slice the basil into ribbons and add to the dressing. toss the salad together with the dressing and then, using a vegetable peeler, shave large pieces of the peccorino romano onto the salad and serve. enjoy!