I wouldn’t call myself a “salad” girl, although I like them just fine. It’s just not my default choice when I go out to eat since I eat them pretty regularly for lunch during the week. But when I go to Coastal Flats (or any of the Great American Restaurants) I order the Warm Goat Cheese & Spiced Pecan Salad 100% of the time. I often like to add a piece of salmon to the salad for a complete, filling meal. But this salad is so genius just the way it is. And the good news? It’s super easy to replicate at home – score!
The salad ingredients are fresh and simple. Use your favorite pecans and croutons – personally I always get the Sweet & Spice Pecans from Trader Joe’s (they are the BEST) and any kind of cheese-garlic croutons.
And the salad dressing is my easy, go-to champagne vinaigrette, using just a handful of ingredients:
To make the salad dressing, just combine all of the ingredients into a mason jar, cover, & shake vigorously. If you don’t have a mason jar, just combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk together well.
This salad is so simple, the only actual “cooking” is frying the goat cheese. And anytime the words “fry” and “cheese” are in the same sentence, I’m all in :)
To make the Warm Goat Cheese, take about 2 ounces of goat cheese and form into a round patty.
Then slightly beat together the eggs and some milk. Dip the goat cheese patty into the egg-milk mixture. Then transfer to the panko breadcrumbs and cover well, patting the breadcrumbs into the cheese.
Repeat with the rest of the goat cheese to make 4 patties. Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter in a small pan over medium heat. (You’ll need 4 Tablespoons total to fry all 4 goat cheese patties). Once the butter is melted, add the panko crusted goat cheese. Increase the heat to medium high, and fry for about 1 1/2 minutes on one side. Flip and cook another 1-2 minutes on the other side. The trick is finding the right temperature to get the panko browned, while keeping the goat cheese whole.
All that’s left is assembling the salad. Add some dressing to your greens and toss to combine. Top the greens with some halved cherry tomatoes, dried cranberries, croutons, pecans, diced red onion, and one piece of fried goat cheese on each salad.
That’s all, folks – this will quickly become your favorite salad too!
- 5 oz Spring Salad mix
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 3/4 pint (over 1 cup) cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 2 cups croutons
- 1/2 cup sweet/spicy pecans
- 1/4 cup red onion, diced (optional)
- 8 oz goat cheese
- 2/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (good quality)
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons champagne vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 clove garlic, minced finely
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- To make the salad dressing, combine all of the ingredients (extra virgin olive oil, champagne vinegar, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, honey, kosher salt, black pepper) into a mason jar. Cover & shake well to combine. If you don't have a mason jar, combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk together well.
- To make the Warm Goat Cheese, take about 2 ounces of goat cheese and form into a round patty. Slightly beat together the eggs and milk. Dip the goat cheese patty into the egg-milk mixture. Then transfer to the Panko breadcrumbs and cover well on all sides, patting the breadcrumbs into the cheese.
- Repeat with the rest of the goat cheese to make 4 patties total.
- Melt 4 Tablespoons of butter in a medium to large sized frying pan, over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, add the Panko crusted goat cheese paties. Increase the heat to medium high, and fry for about 1 1/2 minutes on one side. Flip and cook another 1-2 minutes on the other side.
- Finally, assemble the salads - add some dressing to your greens and toss to combine, top the greens with some halved cherry tomatoes, dried cranberries, croutons, pecans, diced red onion, and one piece of fried goat cheese on each salad.
- Tip: I always use the Sweet & Spicy Pecans from Trader Joe's.
Amazing!!!! Thank you!
you’re so sweet, thanks love! xx
I made this last night with some Salmon and it was just like the Coastal Salad! So Yummy! Zach and I thank you for re-creating this! Also, we love your website! I think this is the 2nd thing I’ve made from your recipes this week alone.
Dona, thank you! This totally made my day!!! That salad is my JAM, so I’m glad you think this is a good at-home substitute :)
This recipe is fantastic! I moved to Georgia and no longer have access to my favorite salad from Coastal Flats. Everything in your recipe is spot on. Thank you so much for sharing.
This made my day, thank you Stacey!