Fall Harvest Salad with Easy Apple Vinaigrette Recipe

Name: Harvest Salad + Apple Vinaigrette
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: ¾ cup wild rice*; 2 medium sweet potatoes (cut into wedges); ½ lb. fresh figs* (about 10); 2 Tablespoons olive oil; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt; 1 teaspoon cumin; 4 cups kale* (washed and torn into small pieces); 1 small head radicchio (thinly sliced); 1 large or two small apples*; ⅓ cup olive oil; ⅓ cup apple cider; ¼ cup walnuts; 3 dates (pits removed and roughly chopped); 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar; 1 Tablespoons Dijon mustard; 1 clove garlic (pressed); ½ teaspoon sea salt; ½ teaspoon cinnamon; pinch red pepper flakes

Published: Sep 22, 2021 · Modified: Nov 17, 2025 by Debra Klein · This post may contain affiliate links · 52 Comments

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The ultimate harvest salad features fresh kale, thinly sliced apples and roasted sweet potatoes and figs. Homemade Easy apple walnut vinaigrette tops this beautiful salad in the most delicious way. This fall harvest salad is simple and so impressive….mouthwateringly good too! Perfectly at home at your Thanksgiving feast or your weeknight kitchen table.

Large bowl of kale salad, loaded with roasted sweet potatoes and figs, sliced apples, wild rice and drizzled with apple vinaigrette.

This post was updated from the original published October 29, 2017.

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Salad Ingredient Notes
Dressing Ingredient Notes
Prep the Salad:
Make the dressing
How to chop radicchio for salad
Assemble the salad
Debra’s Pro Tips
More Hearty Salad Recipes for Fall and Winter
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The stuff of autumn salad dreams…..a little bit of raw, sturdy veggies along with some roasted sweet potatoes and figs with all the cozy spices. Throw on some wild rice for good measure and drizzle with creamy apple vinaigrette….now you’ve got my attention!

The best part? That dressing. O.M.G….creamy apple dijon dressing. I could just sit and dip everything in it…or maybe just eat with a spoon? Naturally sweetened with dates and apple cider….you’re going to just love this homemade salad dressing.

Too many of us pass on the salads when the weather starts to cool….but it’s a great vehicle to get in some nutrients and is the best possible way to keep your system regular and your gut happy. This fall salad is the perfect mix of light and hearty…similar to the way I feel about my lentil salad with roasted veggies.

Small bowl with greens, figs, roasted sweet potatoes, sliced apples and a creamy dressing.

Salad Ingredient Notes

Fresh fig: If fresh figs aren’t in season, substitute red grapes, and YES roast them with the sweet potatoes!
Leafy greens: I used curly kale. It holds up well in this salad. You could also use lacinato kale, red curly kale, collard greens, spinach, arugula, julienned beet greens, watercress, chard…or a combination of lettuces and greens.
Radicchio: A sturdy, bitter part of the chicory family. For a similar bitterness, substitute endive or escarole. If you don’t like bitter, red cabbage would look similar, and add some crunch.
Sweet potatoes: Roasted with cinnamon and cumin, the sweet potatoes add great texture, taste and make this salad particularly satisfying. Any winter squash would also be lovely in this salad. Acorn or delicata squash would have a similar roasting time and also don’t need to be peeled.
Wild rice: A rich source of dietary fiber and loaded powerful antioxidant and lipid lowering properties.
Apple: Snacking apple varieties are best. Baking apples will be too mushy for this salad. I used a honey crisp. Pink lady, gala or golden delicious would also work well.
Spices: A combination of cumin, cinnamon and sea salt is the perfect mixture for a completely cozy fall vibe. You could also use pumpkin pie spices like allspice, clove, nutmeg.

Dressing Ingredient Notes

Labeled ingredients: Olive oil, apple cider vinegar, walnuts, apple cider, dijon mustard, dates, garlic, spices.

Olive oil: Helps bind all ingredients together while offering a creaminess to this dairy-free dressing. No oil sub: tahini and then use a bit of water so dressing is not so thick.
Apple cider vinegar: Pulls this dressing together in the taste department while adding antioxidants, blood sugar regulation and antimicrobial properties.
Dijon mustard: A great compliment to the walnuts and apple cider….just the tang that’s needed. You could substitute a teaspoon of mustard powder.
Medjool dates: Dates with the pits still in will be more moist, and the pits are so easy to remove yourself, sub with raisins.

Prep the Salad:

Make the rice: I used my Instant Pot to make the wild rice. It doesn’t necessarily save time over the stove top method, BUT….it comes out PERFECT. Every. Single Time. And, I never burn the bottom of my saucepan. I highly recommend using an instant pot for cooking grains and legumes.

Roast the veggies: Cut sweet potato into wedges. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with cumin, cinnamon and sea salt. Roast for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Mix in halved fresh figs and roast for another 10 minutes.

Rimmed sheet pan with roasted sweet potatoes and halved fresh figs. Roasted with cinnamon, cumin and sea salt.

Make the dressing

Remove the pits and chop the dates. Add them along with olive oil, apple cider, apple cider vinegar, walnuts, mustard, garlic and spices to blender or food processor and blend until emulsified.

Ingredients for a fall dressing in the pitcher of a blender: oil, vinegar, walnuts, spices, dates, mustard are visible.

Emulsified apple vinaigrette in the pitcher of a vitamix blender.

How to chop radicchio for salad

Halve the head of radicchio.
Cut out the woody core.
Repeat with other half.
Turn cored radicchio half cut side down and thinly slice.

grid of 4 photos showing how to prep radicchio for salad: 1) cut in half. 2) Cut out the core. 3) Cut the core out of other half. 4) place cut side down and thinly slice.

Prep the kale: Gently massage the kale with your hands to soften. You’ll notice the color alter from a dark green to a more vibrant lighter green.

Thinly slice or cube the apples.

Assemble the salad

Start with a base of massaged kale. Then add in radicchio, wild rice, roasted sweet potatoes and figs and chopped apples. Either use a large platter and arrange artfully, then drizzle on some dressing….OR toss everything in a large bowl. Either way, go easy on the dressing to start with and see if it needs more. You can always pass around some extra dressing.

Creamy apple walnut dressing poured from white pitcher onto a platter filled with colorful salad. Greens, roasted sweet potatoes and figs, apple slices, wild rice.

Debra’s Pro Tips

Salad of sliced apples, sweet potatoes, wild rice and figs with a creamy orange dressing.

Make a double batch of dressing: you’re going to want to use this on all the things: as a dip for veggies, for grain bowls, on top of leftovers and to elevate a simple salad.
Instead of a platter, use a large bowl so you can mix everything well and ensure a bit of everything in every bite.
Use grapes if fresh figs aren’t available, they’re incredible roasted and added to a salad. Trust me on this one.
Meal prep: make all components in advance. You can then slice the apple and pull this together in under 5 minutes…at the last minute.
Change up the greens: Diversity in fiber= diversity in gut health. If you bought kale last week, use spinach, collards or chard this time.
Make sure to rinse the rice well before cooking.
Use a darker (older) baking sheet for crispier, more caramelized veggies or use unbleached parchment for a quick and easy clean up.

Bowl of salad with sliced apples, figs, sweet potatoes, radicchio and creamy dressing.

More Hearty Salad Recipes for Fall and Winter

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