Asian Pear Salad with Pecans

A great autumn salad with contrasting textures and tastes. This is the first time I have ever tried Champagne vinegar. It has a light taste and comes all the way from France! Otherwise we'd have to call it Sparkling White Wine vinegar.

Dressing:

1/4 cup Champagne vinegar

1 tsp Dijon mustard (yet another ingredient from France!)

1 TB maple syrup (I use real stuff I bought in Vermont!)

1 tsp salt (I use iodized, but you don't have to if you think it's a conspiracy!)

1/2 cup light oil (I mix olive and non-genetically altered canola!)

Whisk together all the ingredients except the oil. Gradually add the oil in a steady stream as you wield a brisk whisk. (If you add the oil slowly while whisking, it emulsifies better.)

Salad:

Use a couple heads of frisée (that really lacy stuff) except I couldn't find any this week (now that IS a conspiracy) so I used finely chopped Napa cabbage this time

1 or 2 Asian pears (or as I keep hearing, "pear apples") thinly sliced

About 1 cup toasted pecans

3/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola or feta cheese

Toss the salad well with the dressing. It's really good!