Recipe Swap: Holiday Salad with Berry Vinaigrette

It's time for another recipe swap via The Nest's What's Cooking? board. I was given Holiday Salad with Cranberry Apple Orange Vinaigrette from the blog Fried Ice and Donut Holes. I'm not usually a big fan of salads with fruit but I liked this one. I could not find frozen cranberries so I decided to use mixed berries, hence the change in the recipe name. I am not in love with the dressing but I will play around with it and tweak it more to my liking. I made a few alterations (noted below) and also added some bleu cheese crumbles to my salad. Yum!!

For the Salad:
1 container Mixed Greens (used baby spinach)
1 Apple, cored and chopped (used 1/2 of a green and 1/2 of a red)
1 Pear, cored and chopped (used 1/2)
1/2 cup Dried Cranberries (used a dried cranberry and honey roasted pecan mix)
1/2 cup Chopped Walnuts, lightly toasted (used pecans)
1/4 cup Pepita Seeds, optional (I did not use)
Dressing (recipe to follow)

For the Dressing:
1 cup Cranberries, fresh or frozen (used frozen mix-strawberries, blueberries, raspberries)
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup Maple Syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon Fresh Orange Juice
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1/2 teaspoon Salt, or to taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, to taste

In a medium pot, heat the berries, syrup, and vinegar over medium heat until the berries burst, about 7-10 minutes. Slightly cool the cranberry mixture and place in a blender along with the rest of the ingredients, except the salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. Add the salt and pepper, to taste. Blend again, then adjust the other ingredients to taste, if necessary. Place in the fridge to chill. Keep in the fridge in an air-tight container for up to 7 days.