This refreshing summer salad is full of bright colors, fruits and vegetables and a tangy chimichurri style herb vinaigrette to top it off! It's cool, refreshing and perfect for a summer barbecue. If you are not usually a beet person I HIGHLY recommend you still give this one a chance. The sweet peaches, creamy cheese and avocado and tangy vinaigrette thrive off the earthy subtle flavor of cool beets.
For this salad I used a spinach and arugula base. I always add spinach to my salads to add volume but the peppery arugula is key to any good summer salad. I also grilled the peach slices but that is not necessary. Truly I just love those beautiful grill marks on the stone fruit but of course not required!
We dressed this recipe with a tangy herb vinaigrette. I used the basics of a classic chimicchurri and added flavors like red wine vinegar to create this tangy salad dressing!
Creamy cheese like goat or feta brings everything together in this recipe.
The cheese melts into the big bites of beets and peaches. For an added creamy bonus of healthy fats we incorporated some ripe avocado slices. These added fats are key to making a salad more substantial and also help the body to absorb the other nutrients in the salad.
I found the beets to be the unsung hero here!
As someone who has complained of beets tasting "like dirt" in the past. I changed my own mind with this salad. I simply used a can of beets and diced them into bite sized pieces in the salad and they ended up being my favorite part!
This salad would be impressive on its own but pair it with this juicy Pork Tenderloin and Peach BBQ Sauce and your guests will be impressed! Another favorite to pair with this salad is our hasselback potatoes- keep them plain or load them up. Regardless of how you serve it, you can't go wrong with this salad, there's something for everyone!
Peach and Beet Salad with Herb Vinaigrette
4 servings | 5 minutes
Ingredients:
Dressing:
3/4 cup cilantro
1/4 cup basil
1/2 cup spinach leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup red or white wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper
Juice of half a lemon
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
Salad:
1 peach, sliced thinly
1 can of whole beets, quartered
2 oz crumbled goat cheese or feta
1 large avocado, diced
4 cups arugula
Salt and pepper
Directions:
Pulse the herbs, spinach and garlic in a food processor or chop until very fine.
Whisk the herbs together with the vinegars, oil, spices and lemon juice until combined. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Optional step: spray the peaches with nonstick spray and grill them on the grill or a grill pan until they get the nice grill marks and the natural sugars just start to caramelize.
Remove and drain the beets from the can and chop into bite sized pieces. Slice the avocado in half, remove the pit and skin and dice into bite sized pieces.
Assemble the salads with a base of arugula and topped with beets, crumbled cheese of choice, diced avocado and grilled or raw peaches. Season everything with salt and pepper (important in salads) and serve cold drizzled with the herb vinaigrette.
Printer/Screenshot Friendly Version:
Nutrition Facts are provided as a guideline only. Exact nutrition will depend on quantity, brand and ingredients used. Nutrition facts are shown for the salad with no dressing and goat cheese. Note: if you use feta or fat free feta the fat will decrease slightly. Nutrition facts also shown for the herb vinaigrette dressing.