Bacon Apple Cheddar Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

This hearty fall arugula salad is loaded up with crispy bacon, apples, sharp cheddar, roasted sweet potato, rotisserie chicken, candied walnuts, dried cranberries and a creamy, tangy honey mustard dressing. It's filling enough for a full meal, but it also makes for a great Thanksgiving side dish!

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If you've been following us for a while, you know that we love a good holiday salad. Sometimes, we like to keep it simple and fresh – like this citrus burrata salad – but I love a good hearty salad that can double as a full meal.

This one is packed with flavorful and filling ingredients, including plenty of protein from rotisserie chicken. If you wanted to serve this as more of a side than a main, you can leave out the chicken and add a little more bacon and sweet potato instead.

When it comes to the candied walnuts, you don't have to candy them, but it's a quick step that really adds a lot! (If you love candied nuts, try our sweet & spicy rosemary candied nuts, or our cinnamon spiced candied pecans! They both make a great DIY holiday gift.)

Sharp cheddar is our favorite in this recipe, but crumbled goat cheese, feta or blue cheese would also be great options. Arugula is our salad green of choice, but you can also try baby spinach or mixed salad greens.

Step by step instructions

Roast the sweet potato: Preheat your oven to 400˚F. Toss the diced sweet potato with olive oil and salt to taste, then transfer to a small baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned and fork tender. Stir once or twice to prevent burning.

Cook the bacon: Dice your bacon and add it to a skillet over medium heat. Stir often, cooking until the fat renders and it reaches desired crispiness. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked bacon to a plate lined with paper towel.

Make the candied walnuts: Add both sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, cayenne and water to a skillet over medium heat and cook for 1 minute, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is bubbling. Add in the walnuts and continue cooking, stirring continuously, until the liquid has evaporated and the nuts start to stick together. Once the sugar starts to crystallize, remove from heat and transfer to parchment paper to cool completely.

Make the dressing: Whisk together all ingredients until smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as desired.

Assembly: Add the arugula to a large serving bowl. Top with the roasted sweet potato, chicken, bacon, apple, cheddar, candied walnuts and dried cranberries. Drizzle the dressing on top just before serving and toss to combine.

Storage & Make Ahead Instructions

Pretty much every component of this recipe can be prepped ahead of time. The roasted sweet potato, crispy bacon, candied walnuts, dressing and chicken (if you're making your own) can all be made several days in advance. Just keep everything stored separately in the refrigerator, then toss everything together just before serving.

This is the kind of salad that's best consumed right away. We recommend consuming leftovers within 24 hours, otherwise the arugula will be too soggy.

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