This warm apple and fig salad is tossed with a maple dijon dressing and topped with crumbled bacon.

If it’s possible to OD on salad, I think I did it with this one yesterday. An entire bunch of watercress, 2 apples and half a pint of figs all shoved in my face for lunch. I was slightly uncomfortable at the end but I seriously just.couldn’t.stop. After the first half was consumed, I looked at the plate with the other half I was saving for dinner, said “what the hell” and attacked it. Lunch was definitely one of the highlights of the day.

What wasn’t a highlight would be when 2:30pm rolled around and my washing machine which was promised to me by then did not. Let’s just say Home Depot is on my shit list and I still have a pile of sopping wet, soapy clothes sitting on top of my dryer that have been like that for 48 hours now.

I wore a thong (sorry about the visual on that) to crossfit last night because I’m now officially out of underwear. It’s getting desperate. Hand washing commences today and of course I ripped my hands apart after 60 (unassisted!) pull-ups last night. So that’ll be fun.

When I actually did manage to find the illusive salad greens on a menu in Italy, they always seemed to be watercress. I ate watercress more in the past 2 weeks than I probably have in a year actually. So I decided to continue the trend at home with a fall twist.

I don’t know how many times I’ve said something along the lines of “omg, this was soooo good. You have to make it!” but consider this another one.

There’s so much going on from the fresh, crispy watercress to the sweet figs, to the crunchy tart apples, to the salty bacon and the sweet maple dijon dressing but somehow, it all just works. Beautifully.

And thoughts of incompetent delivery people disappear.

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Warm Apple Fig Salad with Maple Dijon Dressing

Yield: 2 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

This warm apple and fig salad is tossed with a maple dijon dressing and topped with crumbled bacon.

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Ingredients

For the Salad

• 1 bunch watercress, bottom of stems chopped off
• 2 small green apples, sliced into matchsticks
• 1/2 pint figs, sliced in half
• 2 slices bacon

For the Dressing

• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon shallot, minced
• salt & pepper

Instructions

1. Wash and dry watercress.
2. Combine all ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl and whisk together.
3. Toss watercress with half the dressing in a large bowl and set aside.
4. In a small skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy. Transfer to a paper towel to drain, leaving bacon grease in skillet.
5. Add apple slices to skillet and cook for 1-2 minutes, tossing frequently until apples are just warmed through but still crunchy.
6. Plate watercress, top with apples, figs, crumbled bacon and drizzle with remaining dressing.

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