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Summary
Fresh blackberries and blueberries, bold blue cheese, and crunchy pecans over crisp lettuce — finished with a clean balsamic vinaigrette.
Our Black and Blue Salad combines blackberries, blueberries, and bold blue cheese for a mix of sweet, tangy, and savory elements. The blue cheese adds just enough rich, funky depth to make it feel a little special, while the pecans add texture and subtle bitter notes that complement everything else. A simple balsamic vinaigrette, emulsified with Dijon, coats everything evenly instead of sinking to the bottom. It’s quick to throw together, looks more impressive than the effort it takes, and works just as well alongside steak or pork as it does for a light lunch.
2
10
minutes3
minutes390
kcal18
minutesFresh blackberries and blueberries, bold blue cheese, and crunchy pecans over crisp lettuce — finished with a clean balsamic vinaigrette.
Ingredients
28 g 1/4 cup pecans
15 g 1 Tbsp high quality balsamic vinegar
5 g 1 tsp Dijon mustard
7 g 1 tsp honey
1 g 1/4 tsp kosher salt
0.5 g 1/8 tsp black pepper
42 g 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
120 g 4 cups chopped green leaf lettuce
85 g 1/2 cup fresh blackberries
52 g 1/3 cup fresh blueberries
60 g 1/3 cup blue cheese, crumbled
80 g 1.5 sticks celery, thinly sliced
30 g 1/4 cup pickled onion
Equipment
Directions
Before We Start
Picking Greens: Green leaf or purple leaf lettuce is what we used here, spring mix or romane also work as alternatives.
Use Good Balsamic: This recipe is designed to use with a high quality balsamic vinegar. It should be thick like a syrup when it comes out and taste great on its own straight from the bottle. Cheap balsamic is thin, fake, and not anywhere near the same thing.
A Brick is Better Blue Cheese: If you can find it, a small wedge or brick of blue cheese that you crumble yourself is ideal. This type tends to be higher in quality meaning it has a noticeably better flavor than their great value counterparts.
Pecans: You can use pre roasted and salted pecans here and break them up yourself. That is our typical path for a weeknight salad.
Pickled Onion: We recommend using our recipe using white balsamic and keeping a batch in the fridge for whenever you need it, but store bought or another recipe is fine as well.Toast the Pecans
28g | 1/4 cup pecans
In a small dry skillet over medium heat, add the pecans. Toast, tossing occasionally, until fragrant and just starting to deepen in color, 3–4 minutes. Transfer immediately to a plate to cool. Do not walk away — they burn fast. Toss with a 1/8 tsp of salt ground fine.
Alternatively, use pre roasted and salted pecans.
Crush them lightly with your hands.Make the Vinaigrette
15g | 1 Tbsp high-quality balsamic vinegar
5g | 1 tsp Dijon mustard
7g | 1 tsp honey
1g | 1/4 tsp kosher salt
0.5g | 1/8 tsp black pepper
42g | 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
In a small bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking until the dressing looks glossy and thickened. You may need to add a 1-2 tsp of cold water depending on how concentrated your balsamic is. It shouldn’t be quite a gravy like consistency, but slightly thicker than a syrup. Normally 1 tsp is enough.
Build the Salad
120g | 4 cups green leaf lettuce
85g | 1/2 cup fresh blackberries
52g | 1/3 cup fresh blueberries
90g | 1.5 sticks celery, thinly sliced
30g | 1/4 cup pickled onion
Toasted pecans from earlier
Wash and dry the lettuce and chop into 1.5 in chunks. Add the lettuce to a large bowl. Add the blackberries, blueberries, celery, pecans, and pickled onion. Drizzle on most of the vinaigrette and toss to coat. Add more dressing to taste. We normally use all of it!
Green leaf lettuce is pretty sturdy — it can take a proper toss without bruising.Finish and Serve
60g | 1/3 cup blue cheese, crumbled
Crumble the blue cheese over the top. Serve immediately.
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Additional Details About This Recipe
Can I make this ahead of time?
Make the vinaigrette (refrigerate up to 4 days), toast the pecans (airtight container at room temp up to a week), and wash/dry the romaine (refrigerate). Assemble and toss right before serving for best texture.
Can I use a different green?
Purple leaf lettuce, Spring mix, and romaine lettuce are good alternatives.
What can I use instead of blue cheese?
Feta for something saltier and firmer. Goat cheese for a lighter, creamier tang. Either works — the salad will be less bold but still good.
Can I swap the berries?
Yes. Strawberries sliced thin work well in place of blackberries — sweeter, less tart. Raspberries are fragile but delicious. The blackberry-blueberry combo is the original for a reason though.
What if I don’t want to toast the pecans?
You can buy the pre roasted and salted. Candied pecans work as well for extra sweetness. Walnuts are a great alternative as well.
How should I store leftovers?
Once dressed, eat it right away. If you are making ahead or know you will have leftovers, do not dress all of it. The dressing will wilt the greens overtime.
Nutritional Facts (per serving)
(Values are estimates based on USDA-style averages for romaine, blackberries, blueberries, blue cheese, pecans, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar.)
- Calories: ~390 kcal
- Protein: ~7 g
- Fat: ~34 g
- Saturated Fat: ~7 g
- Carbohydrates: ~18 g
- Sugars: ~11 g
- Fiber: ~4 g
- Cholesterol: ~13 mg
- Sodium: ~420 mg