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This roasted pear salad recipe is made with arugula (rocket), walnuts, gorgonzola, farro, and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. Perfect as a side salad – it’s easy, nutritious, and so flavourful. Plus, it’s only 10 ingredients and 35 minutes to make!

Roasted pear salad with arugula, walnuts, gorgonzola, and farro on a white plate.

Have you ever tried roasting pears before? It’s so easy to do and it makes the pears so soft, sweet, and delicious. They really take this simple pear arugula salad up a notch and make it something more unique!

This roasted pear salad is meant to be served as a side dish. It would be great for a dinner party in the fall or winter – your guests will love the sweet and savoury flavour combination 🙂

As a dietitian, I’m happy to share that pears are packed with nutrition benefits like fiber and vitamin C. Likewise, arugula is a great source of vitamin K and vitamin A!

In this post I also share some advice for roasting pears, tips for making this salad in advance, along with a handful of recipe modifications to suit your dietary preferences.

Want more delicious, hearty salad recipe inspiration? Check out my roundup of fall and winter salad recipes for more ideas!

Recipe ingredient flatlay on a wood cutting board.

Ingredients Needed

All you need to make this pear salad recipe are 10 simple ingredients:

Full ingredient measurements and detailed instructions are located in the recipe card at the bottom of this post!

Recipe Modifications & Ingredient Swaps

  1. You can do this with raw pears if you’d prefer a faster recipe! Be sure to use riper pears than you would if you were to bake them.
  2. Arugula can be swapped for another leafy green like baby spinach, baby kale, or a spring mix. You could even try this with heartier kale – just be sure to give it a bit of a massage first!
  3. Instead of walnuts, you could use pecans. If you don’t eat nuts, you could swap them for pumpkin seeds or omit entirely.
  4. Farro can be swapped for quinoa, millet, or barley. If you’re gluten-free, be sure to choose a gluten-free grain (farro is not GF!)
  5. If you don’t like gorgonzola or other blue cheeses, you can use shaved parmesan instead. It would likely also taste good with crumbled goat or feta cheese.
  6. For a dairy-free option, you can try using a dairy-free alternative to one of those cheeses listed above.
  7. For a vegan option, use a dairy-free alternative to blue cheese and swap the honey in the dressing for maple syrup.
Roasted pear salad with arugula, walnuts, gorgonzola, and farro on a white plate.

How To Make In Advance

If you’d like to make this salad in advance, you can do the following the day or morning before:

  1. Bake the pears, then transfer them to an airtight container and store them in the fridge.
  2. Cook the farro and store it in a separate airtight container in the fridge. I have a whole blog post about how to cook farro perfectly if you need some tips!
  3. Make the balsamic dressing and keep it in a separate jar in the fridge.

When you’re ready to serve the salad, you can combine the cooked pears and farro with the remainder of the ingredients, then toss everything in the balsamic dressing. This will help to prevent things from getting soggy!

Tips For Roasting Pears For Salad

Never roasted pears before? It’s super easy to do and makes the pears taste absolutely delicious! It really brings out their sweetness 🙂

Here are some tips:

  • What type of pears to use? I recommend using either Bosc, Bartlett, or Anjou varieties for roasting. I personally used Bosc here, but all of these types are readily available in most grocery stores in North America.
  • Level of ripeness. Make sure your pears are not too ripe, or else they will become too soft and soggy. Use pears that are harder than you would eat them raw. Trust me – they will soften and sweeten perfectly!
  • How to cut pears for roasting? For this recipe, I’ve cut each pear into 8 even pieces. To do so, cut each pear in half lengthwise, and then into quarters. Remove the core, stem, and seeds. Then cut each quarter in half to make 8 pieces!
  • How do you know when they’re done? Your roasted pears should be lightly browned and tender enough that you can easily slide a fork into them. Be sure not to roast them for too long (no more than 12-15 minutes), or else they will soften too much for this salad.
Sliced pears spread out on a baking sheet.
Roasted pear slices spread out on a baking sheet.

Pear Nutrition Benefits

Pears are an excellent source of dietary fibre. One medium-sized pear provides 6 grams of fibre, or about 22% of your daily needs.

In addition to fibre, pears are also a source of essential micronutrients, such as: 

  • vitamin C
  • vitamin K
  • potassium
  • copper

Arugula Nutrition Benefits

Arugula is an incredibly nutrient-dense food and an excellent source of many micronutrients.

A 2-cup serving of arugula (40 grams) provides over:

  • 50% of your daily vitamin K needs
  • 20% of your vitamin A needs
  • 8% of your daily vitamin C, folate, and calcium needs
Roasted pear salad with arugula, walnuts, gorgonzola, and farro tossed together.

More Easy Pear Recipes

Did you give this Roasted Pear Salad Recipe a try? Let me know by leaving a comment and recipe rating below!

If you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram or Pinterest – seeing your creations always makes my day. You can also subscribe to my email list to never miss a new recipe or nutrition education post!

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Get the Recipe: Roasted Pear Salad With Arugula, Walnuts & Gorgonzola

This roasted pear salad recipe is made with arugula (rocket), walnuts, gorgonzola, farro, and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. Perfect as a side salad – it's easy, nutritious, and so flavourful!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 6
Roasted pear salad with arugula, walnuts, gorgonzola, and farro on a white plate.
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Ingredients

  • 1 cup farro, dry (how to cook farro)
  • 4 pears (Bosc, Bartlett, or Anjou)
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil (to toss pears)
  • 6 cups baby arugula (rocket)
  • 1 cup walnuts, raw
  • 1/2 cup gorgonzola, crumbled
  • Salt + pepper, to taste

Balsamic vinaigrette dressing:

Instructions

  • Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook farro. I have a post all about how to cook farro on the stovetop, if you need some tips!
  • Preheat oven to 400F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Leaving the skin on, slice pears into 8 even pieces, removing the core, seeds, and stem. Place on the baking sheet, then toss in 1 Tbsp of olive oil, salt, and pepper.
  • Spread pears out evenly on the baking sheet, then transfer to the oven. Roast for 12-15 minutes, until pears are lightly browned and tender enough to slide a fork through them easily. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
  • While the pears roast, make the balsamic dressing by adding all dressing ingredients into a jar with a lid. Shake together vigorously to mix. Alternatively, you could whisk the dressing together in a bowl.
  • To a large salad bowl, add arugula, cooked farro, baked pears, walnuts, and gorgonzola. Pour dressing overtop and toss to combine, seasoning with additional salt and pepper as needed. Serve + enjoy!

Notes

*SERVINGS: This recipe as written will serve about 4-6 people as a side salad.
*A NOTE ON PEARS: Make sure your pears are not too ripe, or else they will become too soft and soggy after baking. Use pears that are harder than you would eat them raw! 
*MAKE IN ADVANCE: If you’d like to make this salad in advance, you can do the following the day or morning before:
  • Bake the pears, then transfer them to an airtight container and store them in the fridge.
  • Cook the farro and store it in a separate airtight container in the fridge
  • Make the balsamic dressing and keep it in a separate jar in the fridge.
  • When you’re ready to serve the salad, you can combine the cooked pears and farro with the remainder of the ingredients, then toss everything in the balsamic dressing. This will help to prevent things from getting soggy!
 
*RECIPE MODIFICATIONS:
  • You can do this with raw pears if you’d prefer a faster recipe! Be sure to use riper pears than you would if you were to bake them.
  • Arugula can be swapped for another leafy green like baby spinach, baby kale, or a spring mix. You could even try this with heartier kale – just be sure to give it a bit of a massage first!
  • Instead of walnuts, you could use pecans. If you don’t eat nuts, you could swap them for pumpkin seeds or omit entirely.
  • Farro can be swapped for quinoa, millet, or barley. If you’re gluten-free, be sure to choose a gluten-free grain (farro is not GF!)
  • If you don’t like gorgonzola or other blue cheeses, you can use shaved parmesan instead. It would likely also taste good with crumbled goat or feta cheese.
  • For a dairy-free option, you can try using a dairy-free alternative to one of those cheeses listed above.
  • For a vegan option, use a dairy-free alternative to blue cheese and swap the honey in the dressing for maple syrup.
 
Course: Salad
Cuisine: American, Mediterranean
Diet: Vegetarian
Keyword: arugula, balsamic dressing, farro, gorgonzola, pears
Author: Carrie Walder

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This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy.