% Salad With Fried Goat Cheese

Out for A Walk-

When it’s the right time of year, I can go just up the street from my house and pick wild Blackberries. It’s a favorite pastime of mine when the season is right. One thing I love doing with those little wild Blackberries is putting them in my Salad With Fried Goat Cheese ( I also like using these little lovelies in my Cheesecake with Blackberry Lavender Swirl). It’s a lovely salad any time of year, but when I can have those berries as a part of it, that’s when I love it most.

This salad could be made any time of year by changing out the ingredients. I love the flavor and colors in this salad, it has it all. Mixed baby greens, tart yet mildly sweet dried cranberries, and the soft sweetness of roasted butternut squash. Blackberries if you can find them are a must. If you can’t? That’s ok too. Rounding out this cornucopia of texture and flavor is fried goat cheese.

Fried Goat Cheese?

If you haven’t eaten goat cheese breaded and fried, you are really missing out. It’s crunchy yet soft and tangy, and pairs nicely with the sweetness of the berries and dried cranberries. The champagne orange vinaigrette compliments the flavors nicely without stealing the show, and would be great on other salads as well. This salad brings together the best of everything. Crunch, sweet, sour, and savory.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

Will the goat cheese melt while frying?

That’s the great part, it won’t! It will get warm but it doesn’t melt in the amount of time it takes to get that coating nice and golden brown.

Could other vegetables or salad greens be used in place of what’s in the recipe?

Most definitely! There are endless possibilities with this salad. You could try thin wedges of delicata squash (you can even leave the skin on it) if it’s in season, or dried blueberries if you can find them. Dried apricots or dried pears would be equally lovely. There are all sorts of greens that would be amazing here such as kale, frisee, radicchio, or arugula.

Can this be made ahead?

Some elements can be done ahead! I would recommend pouring the dressing on top at the last minute, and if you are using any sort of roasted veggie here, you can do that part ahead and have in the fridge waiting and at the ready. I do however recommend that you cook the goat cheese right before serving the salad. Refrigerating the fried goat cheese would make for a soggy breading.

Could plain dried bread crumbs be used in place of panko?

For this recipe, panko bread crumbs are the way to go. They really provide a terrific crunch and texture contrast that would be missing with regular bread crumbs.

Serving Suggestions

This makes a terrific light lunch on its own, or a great dinner when paired with soup. I love eating this year round, but if you are eating this in the Fall, I recommend trying my Delicata and Carnival Squash Soup or Cream of Asparagus Soup in the Spring. This would be a fantastic salad as part of a brunch spread or tea party as well.

I hope you love this salad as much as I do, it’s a favorite in my house. If you have tried this recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below, and please share this recipe with your friends on social media. Happy Cooking!

2 Servings

Salad with Fried Goat Cheese

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

For the Fried Goat Cheese

6 1/2 inch slices Goat Cheese
1/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
1 Large Egg, Beaten
1/3 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1/4 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp Pepper

For the Salad

4 Cups Baby Greens, Chard, Spinach, Kale
1 Cup Butternut Squash, Cut into One Inch Cubes and Roasted
1 Cup Dried Cranberries
1 Cup Blackberries

For the Dressing

1/4 Cup Olive oil
4 Tbsp Orange Juice OR Blood Orange Juice
1 tbsp Champagne Vinegar
1 Clove Garlic, Crushed
1 Tbsp Honey
1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Black Pepper

Instructions

In a medium skillet, heat oil on medium high heat. Place flour, egg, and panko in three bowls for dredging. Slice goat cheese into 1/2 inch thick slices. Add 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper to panko. Dip each goat cheese slice into flour, then egg, then panko. After cheese is dredged, place in the skillet and cook for about three minutes on each side until golden brown, being careful not to cook too long so the cheese does not melt.
Place baby greens in a bowl along with dried cranberries, blackberries, and squash.
In another bowl, place olive oil, orange juice or blood orange juice, champagne vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic, honey, and fresh thyme and emulsify using a stick blender. Toss with greens and plate the salad, topping with fried goat cheese slices.

Notes

For Butternut Squash: Remove rind from squash and cut into one inch cubes drizzle with olive oil, and roast in a 425 degree oven for about 20-30 minutes, until you can easily pierce it with a fork. This can be done in advance, or while preparing the rest of the salad.

Either Blood Orange Juice or regular Orange Juice can be used in the dressing.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1286Total Fat: 65gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 50gCholesterol: 100mgSodium: 1407mgCarbohydrates: 167gFiber: 34gSugar: 90gProtein: 29g

All information presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist or registered dietitian and any nutritional information should only be used as a general guideline. Statements within this site have not been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is provided for recipes contained on this site. This information comes from online calculators. Although The Copper Table attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.