This healthy salad awakens the taste buds with the flavors of fresh fruit, herbs and greens of the season!
Using the freshest ingredients of the season not only shakes up your meal planning and keeps things interesting, but it gives you diversity in the foods and nutrients you get in your diet. When summer rolls around, I love experimenting with new dishes using stone fruits (peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots).
This salad combines the peppery notes of arugula with a little tang from the the grilled apricots. It is balanced off with a delicious white balsamic basil and honey vinaigrette and some goat cheese for creaminess!
If you grill some extra apricots, you can also save them for a delicious dessert with a little vanilla ice cream or whipped cream (coconut cream if dairy free) and some honey. YUMMY!!
What You’ll Need:
- Apricots
- Olive Oil
- Honey
- Basil
- White Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper
- Arugula
- Red Onion
- Goat Cheese (optional)
- Pistachios (optional)
Making the Recipe:
You’ll start by making the vinaigrette. Mix together the oil, vinegar, honey and freshly minced basil and whisk. You can set this aside while you prepare the rest of the salad.
Next, slice the apricots in half along the seam of the apricot. Remove the pit and rub olive oil over the apricots. Season with a small amount of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper on the flesh side.
Let the apricots rest, while you slice the red onion very thinly and cut into bite sized pieces. Set that aside while you cook the apricots.
Warm your grill or a grill pan to medium-high heat. Cook the apricots flesh side down first until warmed and grill marks are visible. Then flip them over for another minute or less. Remove from heat.
Once you’ve finished grilling the apricots, let them cool a bit while you assemble the salad.
Place the arugula on a serving platter or individual plates or bowls. Then, you’ll drizzle about half of the vinaigrette over the greens and mix in gently with your hands or tongs. Top with the apricot halves, red onion, goat cheese and pistachios and serve!
For your enjoyment!
Arugula and Grilled Apricot Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Salads
- Method: grill
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This healthy salad awakens the taste buds with the flavors of fresh fruit, herbs and greens of the season!
Ingredients
For the Vinaigrette:
- 4 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbsp. fresh basil, minced
- 1–2 tsp. honey (raw), to taste
- sea salt, to taste
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the Salad:
- 8 apricots, halved
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1/8 tsp. sea salt (optional)
- 4–5 twists of freshly ground black pepper (optional)
- 8 cups baby arugula
- 1/8 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1–2 oz. goat cheese
- 1/4 cup roasted pistachios (optional)
Instructions
- Put all of the vinaigrette ingredients in a glass measuring cup or bowl and whisk together.
- Mince the basil and add it to the vinaigrette right before dressing your salad.
- Slice the apricots in half and remove the pit.
- Slice the onion thinly. Set aside.
- Rub the apricots with olive oil and season the flesh side of the apricots with a little sea salt and pepper, if you like.
- Heat the grill or a grill pan to medium-high heat. Once warm, place the apricots flesh side down. Cook just until warmed and grill marks show. Flip and cook on the skin side for another minute. Set aside.
- Place the arugula on a serving platter or individual bowls or plates. Drizzle with half of the dressing and gently massage into the arugula.
- Top the salad with the apricot halves, onions, goat cheese and pistachios (if using).
- Drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve.
Notes
- Add a little extra minced basil to the arugula for added flavor.
- Add some grilled chicken to this salad to make it a meal.